A snapshot 5 min read
Following the procurement and contractual close of the Kidston Pumped Hydro Project and Snowy 2.0, multiple pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) projects have been announced, and are in the early stages of planning and procurement. While government support remains important, the development pipeline has grown to include a healthy mix of rehabilitation projects and private sector-led projects.
A snapshot of the PHES projects currently under development, procurement or delivery in the Australian market is set out in the timeline and tables below. These PHES projects accumulate to 13.5 GW/496 GWh of storage capacity potentially operational by the early 2030s. If successful, these projects would fulfill a significant portion of the Australian Energy Market Operator's forecast of the National Electricity Market needing at least 36 GW/522 GWh of storage capacity by 2035 and 56 GW/660 GWh of storage capacity by 2050 in order to reach net zero.
Timeline of projects currently in development
Key details of pumped hydro projects in development
The following projects are being led by the federal government, through government business enterprises, or state governments, through state owned government corporations.
The following projects have government support through development agreements awarded by WaterNSW.
The following projects propose to rehabilitate and repurpose existing mine sites for the development of PHES projects.
The following projects are being led by private developers.