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Entura welcomes announcement of Hazelwood Battery

December 16, 2021

Specialist power and water consulting firm Entura welcomes the announcement this week of the 150 MW Hazelwood Battery, now under construction on the site of the decommissioned Hazelwood Power Station in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley.

The project, privately funded by ENGIE and Macquarie’s Green Investment Group (GIG), will provide critical services to support the Victorian grid by increasing renewable energy capacity and grid stability in the state.

Entura was engaged in 2020 to facilitate the project’s grid connection agreement, which has now been approved by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO).

Entura provided power systems modelling expertise to develop the connection application and performance standards in line with the National Electricity Rules. Further work will include validation and registration of the modelling as the project progresses.

The Hazelwood Battery is expected to be operational in November 2022.

“Storage projects like the Hazelwood Battery are critical in ensuring that electricity networks are resilient, reliable and flexible as renewables capacity and use expand, and Entura’s capability in renewables and network integration was important in enabling this successful connection agreement,” said Lachlan Creswell, Head of GIG, Australia and New Zealand.

Commenting on the announcement of the commencement of construction of the Hazelwood project, Entura’s Managing Director, Tammy Chu, said, “This is a major milestone, and we are delighted to have had the opportunity to apply our grid connection expertise to overcome what has become a particularly challenging aspect of renewable energy projects in Australia in recent years.”

“As passionate advocates for dispatchable renewables, we are proud to have played an important role in supporting this battery storage project which will mitigate challenges in our transitioning energy system, and help to achieve a sustainable, reliable and affordable energy future.”

The Hazelwood Battery will be built, operated and maintained by Fluence under a 20-year contract. The project will be the first in Australia to use Fluence’s Gridstack battery system, incorporating 342 modular factory-built Fluence Cubes, each of which contains battery modules as well as inverters, transformers, switchgear and other equipment. 

Entura is one of the leading consultants in renewables development and integration in Australia and the Indo-Pacific region, with significant experience in grid connection, hybrid renewable energy systems, utility-scale battery energy storage, solar and wind farms, hydropower and pumped hydro. The firm works with clients to help tackle the challenges of creating projects, from grid-connected and utility-scale to small, isolated systems. Entura’s services have been instrumental to the success of other battery projects such as the Lake Bonney Battery Energy Storage System in South Australia, many wind farms and solar farms across Australia, and a range of hybrid renewable projects throughout the Indo-Pacific region including the Kidston Pumped Storage Hydro Project and the Agnew Hybrid Renewable Project.