Through the Australian Government’s Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) Tender 8, 15 successful energy storage projects have been selected from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, and South Australia, with a total capacity of 4.2GW/16.1GWh.
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These batteries will store cheap renewable energy when it is abundant and dispatch it when households and businesses need it most, putting downward pressure on prices and strengthening the reliability of the grid.
The 15 successful battery storage projects will unlock around $6 billion in private investment and deliver an estimated $343 million in benefits for local communities and Australian industry. This includes $62 million in community benefits and $52 million for the use of Australian steel.
Altogether, the projects are expected to create more than 6,800 jobs across construction, operations and maintenance.
Building on the strong response to Tender 8 and other CIS success stories, Tender 10 will target a further 4GW/16GWh of clean dispatchable capacity across the NEM. This tender is now open for bids until 18 August 2026.
Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said the Capacity Investment Scheme was turning Australia’s pipeline of clean energy projects into jobs in regional communities, and cheaper, more reliable power for millions of homes.
“We’ve got the best sun and wind in the world, and we’re using our sovereign renewables, stored in batteries, to shield our grid from global energy volatility and to bring down your energy bills,” he said.
“These batteries will soak up cheap renewable energy during the day and send it back into the grid when demand is highest, helping keep the lights on and bills down.”
The 15 successful projects are:
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