WaterNSW, the state-owned water supplier to New South Wales, Australia, has selected three dams as suitable sites for pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) developments.

The Queensland government has invested AU$48 million to overhaul the ageing 5.7GWh Wivenhoe Pumped Hydro Power Station in Australia.

“The industry has to continue to be aggressive,” says Luigi Resta, president of US renewable energy and energy storage developer rPlus Energies, on the US remaining a competitive market for energy storage.

A 12GWh pumped hydro project and a 1,200MWh battery energy storage system in New South Wales (NSW) have been submitted to Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.

Australia’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) has announced its largest-ever investment commitment, with AU$3.8 billion (US$2.5 billion) allocated to support the Marinus Link interconnector connecting the states of Tasmania and Victoria.

European Commission funding is supporting a project to integrate battery storage at a pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) plant in Slovakia.

Major US utility company Duke Energy has submitted its final license application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to extend operation at the Bad Creek Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Station for an additional 50 years.

Marinus Link Pty has secured FID and EPBC Act approval for the first stage of its HVDC interconnector connecting Victoria and Tasmania.

Australia’s AER has approved plans to convert Basslink to a regulated transmission service, with implications for PHES developments.

EnergyAustralia has partnered with EDF Power Solutions Australia to deliver a 3GWh pumped hydro site in New South Wales.