The Australian company Akaysha Energy, which develops battery storage and renewable energy projects, is about to be purchased by a fund managed by BlackRock Real Assets.
In a statement released on Tuesday, BlackRock stated that it planned to invest more than $1 billion AUD (about $700 million) “to support the build-out” of battery storage assets totaling more than 1 gigawatt.
In the near future, BlackRock reported that Akaysha had intentions to construct energy storage projects in a number of Asia-Pacific economies, including Japan and Taiwan.
As the capacity of renewable energy sources increases, efficient, large-scale storage solutions are going to become more crucial. Despite being renewable, energy sources like the sun and wind are not continuous, which explains why.
A “rapid scale-up of energy storage is critical to meet flexibility needs in a decarbonized electricity system,” according to the International Energy Agency. The IEA estimates that by 2020, spending on battery storage will have increased by over 40% and will total $5.5 billion.
According to data from the Australian government, fossil fuels produced 76% of all electricity in 2020, with coal accounting for 54% of the total, gas for 20%, and oil for 2%. The share of renewable energy was 24%.
The Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources of Australia reported in April that an expected 77,716 gigawatt hours of power would be produced by renewable sources in the calendar year 2021. This amounts to 29% of the total electricity produced.
Anthony Albanese, the nation’s prime minister, stated in a speech last month that “the challenge of climate change is also an opportunity going forward that we must seize to, indeed, become a renewable energy superpower.”
According to a statement released on Tuesday by Charlie Reid, co-head of climate infrastructure for APAC at BlackRock, investment in battery storage assets would be necessary as Australian renewable energy infrastructure continued to “mature.”
This was necessary, he claimed, “to ensure the resilience and reliability of the grid, especially with the continued earlier-than-expected retirement of coal-fired power stations.”
“For our clients, we see tremendous long-term growth potential in the development of advanced battery storage assets across Australia and in other Asia-Pacific markets and look forward to working with Akaysha to ensure an orderly transition to a cleaner and secure energy future,” Reid added.
The need for battery storage appears to be increasing as major economies around the world announce plans to increase their capacity for renewable energy.
Norway’s Equinor said in July that it had reached an agreement to purchase a 100% share in East Point Energy, a developer of battery storage technology based in the United States.
4.1 gigawatts worth of “early to mid-stage battery storage projects centered on the US East Coast,” according to Equinor, a significant oil and gas producer, are in the pipeline at East Point Energy, which has its headquarters in Charlottesville.
The business claimed that battery storage would “play an important role in the energy transition as the world increases its share of intermittent renewable power.”
“Battery storage is key to enabling further penetration of renewables, can contribute to stabilizing power markets and improve the security of supply,” it added.
