The NSW Government has awarded Long-Term Energy Service Agreements (LTESAs) for six new long-duration battery energy storage systems to help secure electricity supply for residents in Marsden Park and across New South Wales. The awards were announced on 5 February 2026 under the NSW Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap Tender Round 6, administered by AEMO Services (AEMO Services Limited / ASL).
The six batteries collectively represent about 1.17 GW of capacity and roughly 12 GWh of storage and are intended to store excess renewable energy from solar and wind farms so it can be dispatched during busy evening periods when demand is highest. The tender aims to strengthen the grid for rapidly growing communities that have placed high demand on local infrastructure.
For families in Marsden Park, the new storage systems act as a safeguard against outages as the state transitions away from coal. The Eraring Power Station was subject to a life-extension agreement in mid-2024 that schedules retirement in 2027, with a possible extension to 2029 — a timetable designed to allow time for long-duration storage to be built and integrated. The projects include the Great Western Battery at the former Wallerawang site near Lithgow — the largest award in this round — alongside other facilities including Armidale East and Ebor.
Each awarded project has a nominal storage duration of eight hours or more (individual project durations range from about 8.7 to 11.5 hours). Work on several sites is expected to start by mid-2026, with the aim of having them fully operational between 2028 and 2030.
NSW Minister for Climate Change & Energy Penny Sharpe said the new batteries would help the state meet its storage targets and exert downward pressure on prices: “These six big batteries mean we’re on track to smash our storage targets, harvesting the sun and the wind so we can power NSW around the clock and put downward pressure on prices.” The government has also emphasised that providing extra local capacity is a priority for the North West Growth Area as thousands of new homes have placed added strain on the local electricity network.
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