The company will present AU$2.85 million in direction of the anticipated venture value of AU$5.7 million for Horizon Energy, an power firm owned by the state authorities of Western Austalia, to put in the techniques at two distant websites via ARENA’s Regional Microgrids Program.
The entire worth of the programme, launched in August 2023, is AU$125 million, and it runs till December 2025.
Its goals embrace facilitating innovation and accelerated deployment of microgrid applied sciences that may allow renewable power integration, growing resilience of electrical energy provide in rural and distant areas and – in a separate stream of the programme – aiding indigenous First Nation communities to profit from microgrid applied sciences.
ARENA stated that whereas lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery storage techniques have been put in throughout Horizon Energy’s networks to facilitate renewable power uptake and add resiliency in distant areas, a necessity for rugged, longer period storage applied sciences, has additionally been recognized.
The trial will see a 100kW/400kWh zinc-bromine circulate battery system deployed at a microgrid within the city of Nullagine, within the historic WA gold mining area of Pilbara, and a 250kW/1,450kWh NAS battery system on the coastal city of Carnarvon.
Whereas the company described the trial as a take a look at of two long-duration power storage (LDES) applied sciences, and each applied sciences are touted as appropriate for purposes requiring 6-hour discharge period or extra, the venture will assess different particular traits of the batteries, akin to their ruggedness in excessive warmth situations.
Applied sciences may grow to be ‘essential a part of power combine in regional communities’
The sodium-sulfur battery tech has been developed by Japanese firm NGK and deployed worldwide at websites for over 20 years, totalling round 5GWh of cumulative installs. NGK has partnered with the power arm of German chemical substances firm BASF for the distribution and ongoing commercialisation of the know-how.
Current venture wins for the pair embrace a primary order in Japanese Europe to a web site in Bulgaria. The know-how additionally went on trial elsewhere in Western Australia a number of months in the past at a copper mine owned by assets firm IGO and backed via the Future Battery Industries Cooperative Analysis Centre (FBICRC), fashioned by business, academia and the Australian authorities.
NAS batteries can function at excessive or low ambient temperatures, and the producer claims it makes use of plentiful uncooked supplies in its development, including up stacks of 1.2kWh battery cells assembled into 20-ft containers of 250kW output and 1,450kWh capability.
The zinc-bromine circulate batteries are made by Redflow, headquartered in Queensland, Australia. The Redflow battery tech depends on zinc, which as CEO Tim Harris identified in a 2023 interview with Power-Storage.information is the “fourth most plentiful metallic on the planet,” and bromine, which Harris stated is at the moment sourced from the Useless Sea, however is also sourced “from different locations on the planet”.
Harris claimed that selection of electrolyte composition provides the Redflow battery increased power density and energy density than different electrochemical circulate batteries, whereas the core design is a hybrid of a circulate battery that depends on tanks of electrolyte whereas additionally plating and replating zinc because it prices and discharges.
Redflow has seen some current success internationally, together with profitable funding from the California Power Fee (CEC) for 4 microgrid tasks to date. One which can characteristic a 20MWh hybrid circulate battery system is at the moment underway with US microgrid designer and developer Faraday Microgrids.
ARENA stated as we speak that the flexibility of each new battery applied sciences to face up to increased ambient temperatures and bear many extra cycles of cost and discharge with out experiencing degradation might be advantageous over Li-ion tech.
“Renewable dispatchable applied sciences akin to photo voltaic PV and wind mixed with lithium-ion battery power storage techniques, and pumped hydro are effectively established, nevertheless, there are traits of every that might not be suited to all places, notably in places with excessive warmth,” ARENA CEO Darren Miller stated.
“Horizon Energy’s venture, if confirmed profitable, may see these modern battery applied sciences grow to be an essential a part of our power combine in regional communities.”
Power-Storage.information’ writer Photo voltaic Media will host the first Power Storage Summit Australia, on 21-22 Might 2024 in Sydney, NSW. That includes a packed programme of panels, displays and hearth chats from business leaders specializing in accelerating the marketplace for power storage throughout the nation. For extra data, go to the web site.