Samsung C&T Renewable Energy Australia has proposed a new grid-connected battery storage system in New South Wales, aiming to bolster grid stability during peak demand.
The Comet Park battery energy storage system (BESS), has a capacity of up to 150 megawatts (MW) and 600 megawatt-hours (MWh) of energy storage.
It is designed to absorb excess electricity from the National Electricity Market (NEM), including from renewable sources, and discharge it during periods of high grid stress.
The facility is planned for a 53-hectare site at 44 River Road within the Leeton Shire Council area, adjacent to the existing Yanco Substation.
The actual footprint of temporary and permanent physical disturbance will cover a smaller 11-hectare referral zone, utilising lithium iron phosphate battery chemistry.
The project proposal is currently pushing through a dual approval pathway. It has been designated a State Significant Development (SSD) under the NSW planning framework and was recently referred under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) to evaluate any environmental impacts.
If approved, construction will span an 18-to-24-month period, generating a peak workforce of roughly 45 full-time equivalent (FTE) personnel and a total of 61 FTE jobs across the build phase.
Heavy construction tasks will include earthworks, battery container installation, transmission connection builds, and critical intersection upgrades on River Road.
Once fully operational, Comet Park is projected to run autonomously 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for an anticipated lifespan of up to 30 years.
Ongoing site maintenance, safety testing, and automated dispatch operations will require about three permanent full-time roles.
An in-principle agreement has already been secured to cover the facility’s lifecycle water demands, which are estimated at 650 kilolitres over 30 years, including safety reserves for fire suppression.
At the end of its operational life, the site will either be fully decommissioned removing all above and below ground infrastructure, and returning the project area to pre-existing land use as far as practicable.