The Victoria government in Australia has approved a 300MW/1,200MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) in Gippsland and a 332MW solar PV power plant with integrated storage in the state’s northeast region, via the Development Facilitation Program.
Victoria’s planning minister, Sonya Kilkenny, announced the approvals for Eku Energy’s Tramway Road standalone BESS and the Meadow Creek Solar Farm, which combines a 332MW solar PV plant with a 250MW/1,000MWh battery system.
The projects represent approximately AU$1.2 billion (US$780 million) in combined investment and will create over 650 construction jobs across both developments.
Eku Energy’s 1,200MWh Tramway Road BESS
The Tramway Road BESS will deliver a 4-hour duration storage capacity of 300MW, positioning the facility to provide grid stability services and energy arbitrage opportunities across Victoria’s transmission network.
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Located in Hazelwood North, the project will be constructed adjacent to existing transmission infrastructure where developer Eku Energy already operates the 150MW/150MWh Hazelwood BESS at the former Hazelwood Power Station coal-fired power plant.
Eku Energy has numerous projects under development in Australia, while also maintaining a presence in several other international markets. The company, which is jointly owned by Macquarie Asset Management and British Columbia Investment Management Corporation, aims to achieve 9GWh of storage capacity by 2028 and has recently expanded into the New Zealand market.
The Tramway Road facility will connect directly to the transmission network, enabling participation in the National Electricity Market (NEM) ancillary services while supporting the integration of renewable energy across southeastern Australia.
The 1,000MWh Meadow Creek solar-plus-storage site
Meanwhile, the Meadow Creek Solar Farm, located 27km southeast of Wangaratta, is being pursued by energy storage developer and system integrator Energy Vault.
Alongside the solar PV power plant, the project proposal includes a co-located 250MW/1,000MW battery system that would provide additional grid stability services during peak demand periods.
The hybrid project will span 400 hectares of agricultural land and incorporate agrivoltaics principles, allowing continued farming operations beneath and around the solar installation.
The Meadow Creek development was first announced in 2022’s edition of All-Energy Australia, where the developer described the BESS as a 250MW/500MWh system.
The Victoria government’s Development Facilitation Program initiative, which was expanded last year to include renewable energy projects, aims to speed up the development of critical infrastructure projects in Victoria.
Before its inclusion, projects had to pass through the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, which resulted in around 20% of these projects being delayed by approximately two years.
The Victoria government noted that more than AU$7.8 billion worth of investment across 22 projects has been included in the Development Facilitation Program since it was expanded to include renewables.
Victoria’s energy and resources minister, Lily D’Ambrosio, emphasised the projects’ role in delivering lower energy costs to Victorian households while creating employment opportunities in regional communities.
“Our fast-tracked pathway has unlocked nearly AU$8 billion worth of investment into renewable energy projects – helping provide cheaper and cleaner energy to hundreds of thousands of Victorian households,” D’Ambrosio said.
Other notable BESS projects to have advanced through the initiative in recent months include Chinese PV module manufacturer Trina Solar’s 500MW/1,000MWh Kiewa Valley BESS, which is being developed in the Murray-Darling basin, to the east of Melbourne, the state capital.
Developer ACEnergy also saw its 350MW/770MWh Little River BESS included within the scheme earlier this year.
