Major Milestone Reached For Contact’s New Grid-Scale Battery

• Fifty-six battery units begin arriving for Auckland’s first grid-scale battery at Glenbrook.

• New battery energy storage system (BESS) will discharge energy at a split second to significantly improve security of energy supply to New Zealanders.

• The 100-megawatt (MW) battery to provide enough electricity at peak demand to power the equivalent of 44,000 homes.

New Zealand’s latest grid-scale battery, set to power the equivalent of 44,000 Kiwi homes at peak demand, has moved one step closer to reality.

Contact Energy (Contact) has today announced that the installation of 56 battery units has begun at the Glenbrook, South Auckland site with the grid-scale battery on track to be operational by next March.

The $163million industrial-sized lithium battery will store excess renewable electricity, often generated by wind or solar in off-peak periods when demand is low, that would otherwise go to waste. In an instant it can then rapidly discharge this stored electricity to the grid when most needed and provide backup electricity to the grid in times of unexpected outages.

Contact’s Chief Development and Major Projects Officer Dorian Devers says the company is committed to both being a leader in the decarbonisation of the country and contributing further to a secure, reliable energy system.

“We are doubling down on our focus to increase electricity generation and improve the resilience of the electricity network. From autumn 2026 our Glenbrook-Ohurua battery will contribute to our diversified fleet of generation, and store energy in reserve ready to discharge to the national grid at a split second when it is needed most,” said Mr Devers.

“This investment and technology is a significant and exciting step forward for New Zealand. It is a game changer, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and supporting the energy transition and the development of renewables like wind and solar.”

Built on land leased from NZ Steel, the site for the BESS (battery energy storage system) was ideal due to its proximity to the national grid, and closeness to the country’s largest city. It will create around 50 jobs during construction.

Contact has the option to further expand the capacity of the battery from 100MW to 130MW at the Glenbrook site. It also has been granted consent to build another 100MW grid scale battery in Stratford, Taranaki.

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