The South Australian government is looking for only one hour of battery storage to be built from its up-coming tender, a stipulation that potentially rules out some technologies from applying.
According to the expressions of interest documents, the tender calls for 100MW/100MWh of battery storage, effectively meaning 100MW of capacity with one hour storage – although some configurations may provide less capacity over a longer time frame.
It says this can be supplied through multiple single or multi sites, but the minimum battery storage capacity at each site is 25 MW/25MWh. EOI for battery storage capacity of less than 100MW/100MWh will also be accepted, it says.
The battery storage tender, among the largest in the world, is attracting major interest in Australia and overseas, including the likes of Tesla, Kokam, LG Chem, Zen Energy, Lyon Solar, Carnegie and VSun, and from Adelaide-based silicon storage proponent 1414.
But some technologies – such as the vanadium redox batteries proposed by Carnegie, VSun and others, may not be suited for the specifications of the South Australia offer.
Victoria, by comparison, is seeking 20MW/80MWh – effectively four hours of storage – in the first part of its 100MW tender.
Final proposals for the SA scheme are due March 31, with the state moving to a formal tender after that and planning to have the facilities installed by summer.
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