The 212MW Lincoln Gap Wind Farm to be built near Port Augusta in South Australia, will include approximately 10MW of battery storage to better manage the intermittency of generation while boosting its ability to provide a cost-effective, reliable clean and secure source of energy. The project is the first in Australia to secure non-subsidised debt finance for a large-scale battery component and provides an important financing model for other developers and investors wanting to be at the forefront of the closer integration of renewables into the grid.
The project will be developed in two stages, with the CEFC committing up to AU$150 million in senior debt finance as the sole financier to Nexif Energy to help it develop the AU$300 million 126MW first stage of its planned wind farm, which will include the battery storage.