Australia’s biggest battery, the Waratah Super Battery, is now operational as a shock absorber to prevent blackouts in New South Wales. Built on the site of the former Munmorah coal-fired power station on the Central Coast, the battery has already added 350MW of capacity since September, with its backstop system activated on Friday. It is the largest energy system integrity protection scheme in the country.
NSW Energy Minister Penny Sharpe described the battery as a crucial addition to state infrastructure, stating it will help power homes and businesses while stabilising the grid to avoid blackouts. Transgrid senior project manager Ahmad Ebadi explained that the system monitors 36 transmission lines in real time, detecting overloading and responding in seconds to increase generation during disruptions such as bushfires or lightning strikes.
Once the full capacity of 850MW is online by the end of 2025, more power can be transmitted and used across NSW. UNSW energy researcher Dylan McConnell noted that the battery reduces the need for building additional transmission infrastructure by increasing utilisation of existing networks, which should lead to lower electricity prices in the long run.
An agreement with the NSW government requires the battery to reserve 700MW of its capacity for system-protecting service during summer days. The project is among 12 battery systems that entered the national energy market in the year to June, more than doubling grid-scale battery discharge. Investment in big batteries has accelerated in 2025, with projects at Eraring and Liddell underway.
Acting chief policy officer Anna Freeman of the Clean Energy Council said the Waratah battery holds as much energy as half an Eraring coal-fired power station and will reduce reliance on coal. Tim Buckley of Climate Energy Finance added that the battery supports more wind and solar projects, stabilising electricity prices and eventually bringing them down.
