Featured in Material change – 03-2024

Cut to the CAES

Compressed air energy storage (CAES) sits at a crossroads. It is considered a mature form of deep storage due to its components being firmly “de-risked” but few projects are operating in the Western world. Bella Peacock examines how compressed air storage technology works and what’s in the pipeline.

By

Bella Peacock

11 Mar 2024

Silver City, Australia’s first CAES facility, is expected to be online by 2027. | Photo: Hydrostor

In a disused mine-site cavern in the Australian outback, a 200 MW/1,600 MWh compressed air energy storage project is being developed by Canadian company Hydrostor. The facility came about after a deal struck with local electricity network operator Transgrid, which had gone to market looking for storage solutions to improve reliability in the famed frontier …

This article is part of pv+

Subscribe digitally to unlock exclusive investigative reporting, expert insights, in-depth analysis, and premium background coverage. Your subscription also includes full access to the digital edition of our magazine.