Transgrid opens a 900 MW pathway for grid-forming battery storage in New South Wales

Transgrid, the transmission network operator for New South Wales (NSW), revised its plan for stabilizing the state’s electricity grid on July 15, 2026, reducing planned synchronous condenser installations from 10 units to eight and opening a new pathway for 900 megawatts (MW) of grid-forming battery energy storage to help meet minimum system strength requirements as coal-fired generators retire, according to pv magazine Global’s report on the announcement.

Why Transgrid revised its plan

Transgrid is the system strength service provider for NSW, responsible for replicating the stabilizing services that coal, gas and hydro generators traditionally provided to the grid as those plants exit the network. The operator’s original plan called for up to 5 gigawatts (GW) of grid-forming batteries alongside 10 synchronous condensers to deliver that stability. Transgrid said it reassessed the plan in response to “rapidly changing market conditions,” including a 38% increase in the cost of synchronous condensers and updated expectations for when NSW coal plants will retire, Transgrid Executive General Manager of Network Jason Krstanoski said, as reported by pv magazine Global.

“The power system is becoming more complex at a faster rate, with shifting demand patterns, evolving technologies and multiple possible future pathways,” Krstanoski said. “In this environment, maintaining flexibility in how system strength is delivered is critical to ensuring the lowest cost outcome for consumers.”

From an efficient-level role to a minimum-level role

Transgrid’s initial plan used grid-forming batteries only for the “efficient” level of system strength, a grid-stabilizing role that lets new solar and wind generators connect and operate securely. The revised plan extends batteries into the “minimum” level of system strength, the baseline needed to keep the power system safe, a role batteries had not previously been assigned. Delays to coal retirement dates gave Transgrid additional time to test whether grid-forming batteries can reliably deliver that minimum-level performance, Krstanoski said.

“We’re creating a pathway for grid-forming batteries to form part of the minimum-level portfolio in a measured way, with their role subject to confirmation of their technical credibility, which we hope to see in the coming years,” he said, adding that Transgrid must confirm battery systems can reliably provide the performance needed for the safe operation of protection systems “before we rely upon them to deliver it in practice.”

Source: pv magazine Global, July 15, 2026, reporting Transgrid’s revised system strength portfolio.

Grid-forming batteries are not yet recognized by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) as capable of meeting minimum system strength requirements. Transgrid said it is engaging with industry, AEMO and other network service providers to validate whether the technology can credibly contribute at that level, with a final statement due by August 24, 2026, following a one-month public consultation on the draft assessment. AEMO has designated grid-forming battery energy storage systems (BESS) a priority action for 2026, describing the technology as central to the NSW power system’s operation as synchronous generation retires.

The 900 MW target is intended to sit in the Sydney West region by the early 2030s. It builds on nine battery projects with a combined 2 GW of capacity that Transgrid had already shortlisted in March 2026 to address the efficient-level requirement, expected to provide stabilization capacity equivalent to roughly 17 additional synchronous condensers. Krstanoski said the revised portfolio also retains hydro and gas support as a fallback “if battery capability is delayed or under-delivers.”

Background

The revision follows a broader build-out of Australian grid-scale battery capacity: renewable energy capacity reached a record 5,149 GW worldwide in 2025, according to IRENA, with storage increasingly deployed alongside new wind and solar to manage that growth. Grid-forming inverters, the technology that lets batteries mimic the stabilizing behavior of spinning generators rather than simply following the grid’s existing frequency, now feature in 74% of Australia’s 33.2 GW battery storage project pipeline connected to the National Electricity Market, reflecting how central the approach has become to Australian grid planning as coal capacity is progressively retired. Transgrid’s shift from treating grid-forming batteries as a secondary, efficient-level tool to a candidate for minimum-level system strength marks an incremental step in that direction, contingent on the technical validation due by the end of August 2026.

Sources: pv magazine Global; Energy-Storage.News; ESS News

Featured image: photo by Elite Power Group on Pexels (free Pexels license).

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Figen Sekin

I specialize in sustainability education, curriculum co-creation, and early-stage project strategy. At WINSS, I craft articles on sustainability, transformative AI, and related topics. When I’m not writing, you’ll find me chasing the perfect sushi roll, exploring cities around the globe, or unwinding with my dog Puffy — the world’s most loyal sidekick.