Origin Energy receives $24m from ARENA for 300 MW grid-forming battery at Mortlake

The battery will deliver grid forming and stability services to Victoria’s South West zone.

Origin Energy has gained $24m in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) for a new 300 MW/650 MWh grid-forming battery in Victoria’s west.

As a response, it has issued a “notice to proceed” to energy storage provider Fluence to serve as the EPC Contractor for the $400m grid-forming Mortlake project.

The 300 MW battery at Mortlake will provide grid forming and stability services to the wind and solar farms of the region, specifically in Victoria’s South West Renewable Energy Zone.

In addition, as the EPC contractor, Fluence will apply grid-forming inverters supplied by SMA for the battery, located near Mortlake Power Station.

“As traditional forms of energy generation are phased out, new clean technologies are required to take their place. The decision to proceed by Origin further highlights the increased confidence in grid-forming inverter technology and the strong market incentives driving investment in battery storage,” Darren Miller, CEO of ARENA, said.

The initiative will serve as part of the $176m Large Scale Battery Storage Funding Round, commenced by ARENA. This includes the 150 MW/194 MWh Hornsdale Power Reserve in South Australia, the largest operational grid-forming batteries in Australia.

The battery is set to be commissioned by late 2026.