A grid-scale battery being installed at an Australian gas-fired power station is said to be a “first” for the country.
Power company Origin told BEST Battery Briefing the four-megawatt lithium-ion battery at its Mt Stuart Power Station, in Townsville, would improve security of electricity supply to homes and businesses across North Queensland.
Origin’s executive general manager of energy supply and operations Greg Jarvis said: “This will be the first time in Australia that a grid-scale battery has been connected to an open cycle gas turbine system and will not only create efficiencies, but enable a reliable start up in the event of a large scale power outage.”
A Korean consortium led by Bosungpowertec— which is backed by South Korea’s government to showcase domestic battery technology overseas— is supplying the four megawatt-hour battery.
Installation and commissioning will be completed in May 2019.
Mt Stuart, operational since 1999, is about 12 kilometres south of central Townsville. The 414MW plant is the largest such facility in North Queensland.
Jarvis said: “Having a battery of this size means we’re able to store the energy needed to start the power station without the aid of the electricity from the transmission network should a loss of power occur due to an event like a cyclone.”
