GESS is a pioneering project in Australia’s National Electricity Market. It is the first attempt at retrofitting a battery behind the existing point of connection of a utility scale renewable energy power plant, GSF.
Report extract
GESS is a pioneering project in Australia’s National Electricity Market. It is the first attempt at retrofitting a battery behind the existing point of connection of a utility scale renewable energy power plant, GSF. At the time of writing GESS and GEF is the largest integrated renewable energy and battery system in Australia and among the largest in the world.
The battery retrofit model is one that will be increasingly sought out by existing renewable projects as both the economics of battery systems improve and as these renewable projects seek out options to mitigate risks that are becoming increasingly prevalent, such as curtailment, causer pays FCAS and wholesale market power price volatility and depression. It is also a model that makes better use of existing network infrastructure, including substations that are dedicated to single assets, which in the case of solar are utilised only during daylight hours.
Over the course of its development, Edify worked closely with its project partners, AEMO, the AER, Powercor, DELWP, ARENA and WIRCON to pave a regulatory, commercial and technical pathway to enable GESS’s deployment. In doing so, a number of lessons were learned, which are outlined in this report for the benefit of the broader sector.