![AGL has recently announced plans to build a 500megawatt battery at the corner of the corner of Old Punt Road and the Pacific Highway Tomago. AGL has recently announced plans to build a 500megawatt battery at the corner of the corner of Old Punt Road and the Pacific Highway Tomago.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/UfX4XDhNMhVpTbjzWZdknP/2e376f93-8a74-483c-ae44-c3e4c1f07ad4.jpg/r0_0_976_678_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
When Liddell power station closes this week about 1700 megawatts of dispatchable power will be taken out of the state's energy grid.
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While there will be plenty of wind, solar and other renewable generation to replace the lost capacity, it can't be turned on at the flick of a switch in the same way a coal-fired turbine can.
That's where batteries come in.
With the potential to store as much energy as a coal-fired turbine can produce over a short period of time, so-called big batteries will play a vital role in providing reliable baseload power.
They will complement other storage firming technologies such as gas peakers and pumped hydro.
There are presently four grid-scale batteries in the planning and development phase across the Hunter.
Origin Energy recently made a final investment decision on a 460megawatt battery for the Eraring power station site. The battery, to be built in stages, has the capacity to be expanded to 700 megawatts.
![What Origin Energy's 460MW battery at Eraring power station will look like. What Origin Energy's 460MW battery at Eraring power station will look like.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/UfX4XDhNMhVpTbjzWZdknP/cb4ffcd5-1191-4a6f-ac52-1d43556d61fa.jpg/r444_4_1464_1045_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
AGL also has a 500 megawatt project in development at the Liddell power station site, which will form part of the Hunter Energy Hub.
The 850 megawatt Waratah Battery is under construction at the site of the former Munmorah power station. The battery is due to come online in 2025 to coincide with the earliest closure date for the nearby Eraring power station.
"Batteries can ramp up quickly, have near zero start-up time and provide a better frequency response," Clean Energy Council chief executive Kane Thornton said.
"Electricity demand must match supply at all times, and so on very hot days when demand spikes we quickly need more supply to respond. Sometimes, it's only for a few seconds; other times, it's for a couple of hours. In this respect, the capability of large-scale batteries is unrivalled. Over the past three years, batteries have been essential in keeping the grid stable and keeping power flowing to energy users."
The grid-scale batteries will be complemented by a host of smaller scale batteries in the 200 megawatt range across the Hunter Region.
Energy company Firm Power is seeking community input into a proposal to build a 200 megawatt battery at Beresfield.
The project, to be located on a 1.5 hectare site next to the existing substation in Whites Road, would form part of a Hunter Dispatchable Energy System.
In addition to Beresfield, the system includes battery projects at Awaba and Muswellbrook.
Residential batteries, which are individual batteries connected to home solar panels, can store excess power during the day and release it during the night or at times of intermittent supply.
Deputy Director of the Monash Energy Institute Roger Dargaville said residential batteries would function as a note in a local energy network.
"In broad terms, a battery would be there to soak up extra power from your solar panels. So if you're not at home during the day, or if your solar panels are producing more power than you can use during the day, the battery will store those kilowatt hours. And then after the sun has set and you want to use energy for your cooking or washing or running your air conditioner, then you draw the power from the battery rather than the grid. And so that avoids you having to buy power off the grid."