Utility Scale Storage

After a six-year delay, the 60 MW Kennedy Energy Park in Australia – hailed as the nation’s first fully integrated, utility-scale solar, wind, and battery project – has finally achieved full commercial operations.

Researchers in Australia have developed a new class of solid electrolytes for rechargeable aqueous zinc-iodine batteries, which has allowed for extended lifespan and high-efficiency. Symmetric cells employing this electrolyte have demonstrated excellent cycle performance, maintaining stability for approximately 5,000 hours at room temperature, while all-solid-state ZnI2 batteries exhibit over 7,000 cycles with a capacity retention exceeding 72.2%

A new partnership will investigate the viability of colocating a closed-loop pumped hydro energy storage facility with solar PV at the site of a former gold mine in Moose River in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Atlantic Mining, owner of the mine, and Natural Forces, a renewables company with 300 MW of operational capacity in Canada, are optimistic the project will be feasible.

Rystad Energy says China appears set to smash its national hydrogen targets, solidifying its lead in the global electrolyzer market, while European Union and Japan have agreed to cooperate on hydrogen research.

China’s updated power market regulation now encompass a broader range of market participants, including energy storage entities, in a bid to ensure secure operation.

At a time of growing demand for battery energy storage, pv magazine spoke with Eloisa de Castro, CEO of Enerpoly, a Swedish company preparing to launch the world’s first zinc-ion battery megafactory on its home turf. Having solved rechargeability issues, the company expects its safe and sustainable zinc-ion batteries, which rely solely on a European supply chain, to increase their market share in the years to come.

Australian miner Liontown Resources has flicked the switch on one of the largest off-grid renewable energy hybrid power stations in Australia.

US-based technology provider Torus has agreed to supply nearly 26 MWh of energy storage for Gardner Group’s commercial real estate portfolio. The project will integrate battery and flywheel energy storage systems (BESS, FESS) with Torus’ proprietary energy management platform.

UK’s Hive Energy said the projects will feature battery energy storage systems that equate to 10% of the overall solar capacity.

Chilean utility Colbún has unveiled plans for a massive pumped storage hydropower project in northern Chile. The facility will use desalinated water from the Pacific Ocean to store energy and use it when it’s most needed.