November 8, 2023: Lead and lithium battery maker Narada Power has signed a Rmb335 million ($46 million) deal with Shanghai Electric Power Design Institute Materials to supply battery tech for a BESS project in Western Australia.
Narada said on November 3 it had signed a purchase contract with Shanghai Electric Power to supply the lithium iron phosphate batteries for the 100MW/200MWh Wagerup Big Battery project near the state capital of Perth.
The two-hour duration BESS will support peak shaving and frequency modulation to help the stable operation of the grid.
Shanghai Electric Power and Sunterra have been contracted by Alinta Energy to deliver the BESS at the gas and diesel-fired 380MW Wagerup Power Station.
Alinta chief development officer Ken Woolley said the battery will connect to existing high voltage infrastructure at Wagerup and is scheduled to be commissioned during the second half of 2024.
A groundbreaking ceremony for the project (see photo) was held on November 1 attended by Western Australian energy minister Bill Johnston.
In July, Narada said it had won bids and signed agreements for BESS projects totalling around 5.5GWh since the start of the year.
Earlier this year, the Australian Energy Market Operator called for urgent investment in long-duration energy storage systems as part of plans to meet Australia’s power supply needs over the next decade.