en.Wedoany.com Reported - Australia's New South Wales (NSW) is about to launch its largest-ever new generation capacity tender, focusing on procuring solar-battery hybrid projects and wind projects capable of supplying power at night, alongside a companion 12.5 gigawatt-hour long-duration storage tender aimed at providing replacement capacity for four aging coal-fired units set to retire.
The 2.5 gigawatt (GW) tender is expected to officially launch next week, marking NSW's first tender since the federal government's Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) commenced. The state has largely completed its CIS allocation, but new generation construction has significantly lagged—currently, only Squadron Energy's 414 MW Uungula Wind Farm is under construction. To accelerate deployment, tender administrator ASL has adjusted the rules, specifically encouraging projects that generate power during non-solar hours (such as evenings and nights) to address the current situation where surging rooftop solar during the day is causing wholesale electricity prices to plummet.
ASL has clarified in the latest tender documents that projects whose generation profiles align with NSW's high-value periods (i.e., non-solar hours) will gain a financial advantage. Wind power, due to its nighttime output characteristics, is still considered a core technology, but the tender also requires solar-battery hybrid projects to have a minimum of 4 hours of storage duration, with generation capacity no less than storage capacity, to ensure they can effectively deliver power during the evening peak.
To date, NSW's previous tenders have driven several projects close to completion, including Acen Renewables' New England (720 MW) and Stubbo (40 MW) solar projects, Neoen's Culcairn (400 MW) solar farm, and Iberdrola's Flyers Creek Wind Farm (which was already under construction when awarded). Goldwind's 275 MW Coppabella Wind Farm and most CIS-awarded NSW projects have yet to commence construction.
Additionally, NSW will launch another long-duration storage tender this month, requiring a minimum of 8 hours of storage duration and a total capacity of 12.5 gigawatt-hours, as part of a plan to achieve 42 gigawatt-hours of storage reserves by the early 2030s. In the three previous long-duration storage tenders, large-scale battery projects dominated, such as RWE's Limondale battery (50 MW/400 MWh), which is already operational; among non-battery projects, only Acen Renewables' Phoenix Pumped Hydro project and Broken Hill's Silver City advanced compressed air energy storage facility were awarded.
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