SIMEC Zen Energy to build world’s biggest battery near Port Augusta, overtaking Elon Musk’s facility
Elon Musk’s Tesla battery in South Australia’s Mid-North will no longer be the world’s most powerful — with a new, bigger battery being built at Port Augusta.
The new battery will be built by Whyalla steelworks owner Sanjeev Gupta, who secured a $10 million loan from the State Government through its Renewable Technology Fund.
The British billionaire, who purchased the steelworks last year though his company Liberty House, also bought a controlling stake in South Australian renewable firm Zen Energy — creating SIMEC Zen Energy.
The 120 megawatts/140 megawatt hours storage facility is larger than the 100MW/129MWh battery built by Tesla in Jamestown last year.
It will support the new solar farm being built at the Whyalla steelworks and will create up to 100 jobs during construction, which will begin later this year.
Premier Jay Weatherill said it would also benefit the broader South Australian community.
“We know that more renewable energy means cheaper power, and that’s why we have increased our renewable energy target to 75 per cent and also introduced a new renewable storage target of 25 per cent,” Mr Weatherill said.
