Zen Energy has officially announced the commencement of the construction of the Templers battery energy storage system, with funding secured from investment giant Stonepeak.
Stonepeak, through its portfolio company Peak Energy, has provided a debt package of AUD 70 million to facilitate the construction of the AUD 200 million project near Gawler. Zen Energy will build, own, and operate the 291 MWh battery, with an expected operational date in early 2025.
The construction phase is projected to create over 180 jobs and take 17 months to complete. Once operational, the battery will provide services to the South Australian grid and support energy delivery to existing customers.
ElectraNet has already executed a connection agreement with the battery, and it is expected to provide grid-stability services to the wider National Electricity Market. Zen Energy sees this as a significant milestone in their growth path.
“South Australia led the pack when we invested in the Hornsdale Power Reserve, and our state is now home to six grid-connected batteries with a total capacity of more than 500 MW,” he said. “These investments are a big vote of confidence in our state’s ambitious plan to get to net zero emissions in energy production by 2027, and to help the world along the pathway to decarbonization.”
Zen Energy’s first utility-scale battery energy storage system, the Templers battery project, was acquired from UK developer Renewable Energy Systems (RES) in 2023.
It is the second largest project in South Australia, with AGL Energy’s Torrens Island power station energy storage system being the only one to overshadow it, unveiled in August 2023.
Zen Energy, which secures electricity from 20 solar and wind farms across Australia to cater to a total customer volume of over 1 TWh, is also working on plans to establish a large-scale hybrid solar and battery project in South Australia.
The proposed Solar River project would consist of more than 200 MW of solar generation and a minimum of 300 MWh of energy storage capacity.
Source Zen Energy
