Equis Australia has secured A$260m ($163m) financing and begun construction for the 250MW/500 megawatt hours (MWh) Calala battery energy storage system (BESS) in Tamworth, New South Wales (NSW), Australia.
The company secured the non-recourse senior debt financing package from Westpac, Société Générale and the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation.
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The Calala BESS is 5.8km southeast of Tamworth town centre. It will be connected to NSW’s electricity grid via an underground cable to the 330kV Tamworth substation.
The project will be fully operational by 2027 and will power 115,000 homes during peak times.
It is designed as two independent projects, with one 100MW/200MWh portion supported by a long-term offtake agreement with Smartest Energy for its full capacity.
The remaining 150MW/300MWh portion will operate as a merchant BESS, utilising Tesla’s real-time trading and control platform, Autobidder, which includes a revenue share and a minimum revenue guarantee.
Equis co-founder and managing director David Russell stated: “The Calala BESS will be instrumental in supporting New South Wales’ renewable energy targets while also providing critical firming and frequency support services to the National Electricity Market (NEM), enabling greater integration of renewable energy for Australia.”
The construction of Calala BESS will create 170 jobs and up to seven jobs during its operation.
Equis’ in-house planning and communications team has been engaging with the Tamworth community since 2022, ensuring the project’s success through local support.
In addition, through a Voluntary Planning Agreement (VPA), Calala BESS will contribute A$2m to Tamworth Regional Council.
Equis Australia head and managing director Mahesh Reddy stated: “Calala BESS has contracted Tesla to provide 138 Tesla megapacks, consolidated power projects to deliver the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the balance of plant, and Transgrid to complete the connection into the Tamworth Substation.
“We’re proud to be delivering the project in partnership with experienced and highly regarded counterparties, each with a proven track record of delivering complex infrastructure projects on time and within budget across Australia.”
In April 2023, Equis Development created a 50/50 owned consortium with SSE Renewables to bid for the Gippsland offshore wind projects in Victoria, Australia.
