Australia is set to launch its second Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) tender this month, aiming to procure 500 MW/2,000 MWh of projects capable of dispatching energy over four hours.
The federal government announced the initiative in a recent market brief, detailing key aspects of the tender's design managed by AEMO Services.
Eligible projects, located in Western Australia and connected to the South West Interconnected System (SWIS), must provide a minimum of two hours of discharge duration and exceed 30 MW in capacity. Final specifics of the tender's design are expected to be unveiled shortly.
This auction marks a milestone in Australia's expanded CIS programme, bolstered last November to support the delivery of 32 GW of renewable and dispatchable power by 2030. Tenders will be conducted every six months from 2024 to 2027, aligning with the nation's goal of achieving 82% renewable energy by the end of the decade.
Australia successfully concluded its pilot CIS auction last year, awarding over 1 GW of firming capacity across six projects in New South Wales.
