Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners has marked major milestones at its Supernode battery project in Brendale, reaching commercial operation for Stage 2 and achieving financial close on AU$469 million in debt financing for Stage 3.
The developments solidify Supernode, situated north of Brisbane, as Australia’s largest operational battery energy storage system (BESS) campus. Total project capital across its first three stages now reaches roughly AU$1.2 billion, delivering a combined capacity of 780 MW / 3,074 MWh.
Battery giant CATL continues as core technology supplier across the campus. Following its supply of EnerC Plus liquid-cooled systems for Stages 1 and 2, CATL will deploy its TENER S technology for Stage 3.
The high-density hardware design reduced the site’s required physical footprint by around 20 per cent, enabling compact deployment on industrial land adjacent to the critical South Pine substation.
Under a long-term service agreement (LTSA), CATL will also provide ongoing lifecycle maintenance, monitoring, and fault response.
Tim Hornemand, Managing Director and Regional Lead at Quinbrook, noted the significance of the progress amidst Australia’s complex energy landscape.
“Achieving commercial operations for Stage 2 means we’ve successfully delivered both Origin-contracted stages on schedule,” Hornemand said.
“With Stage 3 now fully financed, we’ve reached another important milestone in Supernode’s continuing development. The ongoing support of our banking partners reflects confidence in the project and the long-term outlook for battery storage in Australia.”
Tan Libin, CCO and Co-President of Sales & Marketing at CATL, added that energy storage is evolving into a strategic asset.
“At CATL, we are committed to working with partners to unlock the full potential of energy storage assets and support the transition toward a more flexible and resilient energy system,” he said.
Looking ahead, Quinbrook and CATL are assessing EnerQB, an eight-hour long-duration battery solution, for potential future expansion at the Supernode site, which boasts planned ultimate capacity exceeding 3 GWh.