Project bids are now open for the Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) Tender 2, which is seekinhg bids for dispatchable capacity projects in the Western Australian Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM).
Related article: Capacity Investment Scheme supercharged to 32GW
The WEM is separate to the National Electricity Market (NEM) and operates with a unique Reserve Capacity Mechanism (RCM). Tender 2 closely aligns with the RCM process and aims to deliver a pipeline of quality, bankable projects for inclusion in the mechanism.
This tender aims to deliver 500MW of 4-hour equivalent (or 2,000MWh) of clean dispatchable capacity. This will help support our energy system to reach 82% renewables by 2030.
Projects must be located in Western Australia; connect to the South West Interconnected System (SWIS); have a minimum storage duration of 2 hours; and have a minimum registered capacity of 30MW.
Following the successful June completion of the Stage A bids for CIS Tender 1, seeking generation capacity in the NEM, AEMO Services will administer the CIS tender 2 process on behalf of the Australian Government.
The Australian Government will run CIS tenders every 12 months for the WEM and every 6 months for the NEM until 2027.
Through the CIS, the government will seek competitive tender bids for renewable capacity and clean dispatchable capacity projects to deliver an additional 32GW of capacity by 2030 and deliver the Australian Government’s 82% renewable electricity by 2030 target.
Related article: Western Australia gets $3b funding for grid expansion
Project bids will close in mid-August and announcement of successful bids is expected in early 2025. Read the tender guidelines and submit a project bid here.
