Image:EIA
The 600MW energy hub will power 200,000 homes and boost Victoria’s renewable future.
Work has officially commenced on one of the world’s largest renewable energy storage batteries in Plumpton, part of the City of Melton, located approximately 27 kilometres northwest of Melbourne’s CBD. The Melbourne Renewable Energy Hub will store renewable energy for use during peak demand periods and absorb surplus rooftop solar power from Victorian homes as it feeds back into the grid.
The project features cutting-edge inverter technology to support the transmission grid’s voltage and frequency, addressing the loss of ‘system inertia’ that will occur as coal and gas-fired power stations are phased out over the next decade. Premier Jacinta Allan and State Electricity Commission Minister Lily D’Ambrosio visited the site on Wednesday to mark the start of the installation of the first of 444 Tesla Megapack battery units.
Once complete, the 600-megawatt facility will offer 1.6 gigawatt-hours of energy storage—enough to power up to 200,000 homes during peak times. More than 15,000 tonnes of rock extracted from the site will be reused to create a protective barrier around the hub, which will be landscaped with native vegetation.
This project is the first from the revived State Electricity Commission (SEC) under its $1 billion investment in renewable energy infrastructure. Co-owned by renewable energy investor Equis Australia, the hub is a key part of the SEC’s goal of generating 4.5 gigawatts of new renewable energy capacity.
As Victoria moves towards 95% renewable energy generation by 2035, building energy storage capacity is crucial for ensuring an affordable and reliable power supply. The Melbourne Renewable Energy Hub in Plumpton is expected to become operational next year.
