Australia’s clean energy storage pipeline has taken another strong step forward.
The latest round of the Capacity Investment Scheme has secured more lithium-ion batteries than originally targeted and drawn unprecedented market interest.
The third CIS tender sought 4 GW of dispatchable capacity across the National Electricity Market but attracted bids totalling around 34 GW, equivalent to 135 GWh of storage.
Sixteen projects were awarded contracts, committing 4.13 GW (15.37 GWh) of battery storage scheduled to be online by 2029. That volume is estimated to support peak demand for more than 3.5 million households.
The successful projects represent more than $3.8 billion in local content commitments, alongside $218.8 million in First Nations benefits, $36 million in shared community programs and $33.6 million in Australian steel.
Two of the projects have pledged First Nations equity-sharing agreements, while several others will subcontract with Indigenous-owned firms and provide workforce training and participation pathways.
TAFE partnerships and STEM-focused school programs are expected to underpin skills development, with an estimated 1,900 construction jobs and over 100 long-term operations and maintenance roles generated during the assets’ 20-year life.
“In three short years our reliable renewables plan has unlocked record levels of investment in Australia’s energy grid, while delivering good jobs, training, and community benefits to locals hosting this critical new infrastructure, that’s increasingly Australian-made,” said Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen.
Among the projects, Lightsource bp’s 450 MW Goulburn River Standalone BESS in New South Wales will be the largest by energy rating at 1,370 MWh.
Other major installations include Equis’s 400 MW, 1,600 MWh Teebar BESS in Queensland, and ACEnergy’s 350 MW, 1,400 MWh Little River BESS in Victoria. South Australia’s contributions include the 800 MWh Koolunga BESS and the 1,000 MWh Reeves Plains facility.
This latest procurement builds on the 19 CIS agreements already executed nationwide, covering 5.85 GW of capacity. To date, the scheme’s portfolio has locked in an estimated $10.5 billion in combined First Nations, community and local content outcomes.