French renewables company Neoen SA has successfully energized the first stage of its Collie Battery in Western Australia, with plans to commence commercial operations later this year, the company announced in a LinkedIn post on Monday.
Located near Collie in Western Australia's South West region, the Stage 1 Collie battery boasts a capacity of 219 MW/877 MWh and is equipped with 224 Tesla Megapack 2XL units. This initial phase is part of Neoen's broader Collie battery complex, which aims to reach 1 GW/4 GWh in total capacity.
The project was initially conceived in 2021 and received state government approval a year later. Neoen secured a contract with the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) for the first phase of the ambitious project last summer.
The upcoming Stage 2 of the Collie battery will feature a capacity of 341 MW/1,363 MWh, utilizing 348 Tesla Megapack 2XL units.
Scheduled to operate under a four-hour capacity services contract with AEMO signed in April, this phase aims to support evening peak power discharge, addressing challenges related to the retirement of coal power plants, increased rooftop solar adoption, and rising energy demand in Western Australia.
