SEMI-FINALIST
ACEN Australia
New England BESS
Uralla, New South Wales, Australia
The New England Battery Energy Storage System (NE BESS) is a 200 MW utility-scale battery storage facility being developed in New South Wales to support Australia’s transition to renewable energy. The project includes more than 100 containerised battery units, along with a new substation switchyard and switch room to connect the system to the National Electricity Market. Once operational, the facility will enhance grid stability and enable greater integration of renewable energy across the region.Owner:
December 1, 2026
Project type:
Energy Storage
More About This Project:
The New England BESS project is designed to strengthen Australia’s electricity grid by providing large-scale energy storage capable of delivering 200 MW of capacity over a two-hour duration. The project includes the installation of over 100 containerised battery energy storage units, as well as supporting electrical infrastructure such as a dedicated substation switchyard and switch room. Delivered through a split multi-EPC contract model, the project requires careful coordination between ACEN Australia and several principal contractors, including Energy Vault, EPEC, and RJE.
Managing interfaces between engineering disciplines and contractors is one of the most critical challenges on renewable energy projects. To address this complexity, ACEN Australia facilitated collaboration by hosting multi-day workshops with all delivery partners during the project’s early stages. These sessions established shared communication protocols, aligned expectations across teams, and created a unified delivery strategy that helped reduce risks associated with multi-contract execution.
The project has maintained strong performance through coordinated communication, structured document workflows, and collaboration across stakeholders. With more than 120 users actively collaborating on the platform, the team has been able to manage design coordination, project documentation, and contractor interfaces efficiently — contributing to the project running ahead of schedule at the time of submission.
Supported by InEight:
ACEN Australia used InEight to manage project documentation and communications across multiple EPC contractors on the New England BESS project. The system provided a centralised, time-stamped repository for project records such as progress photos, inspection reports, and defect notifications, creating a structured source of project information throughout construction. InEight also supported document workflows and design review processes, helping streamline submissions and coordination across multiple contractors. These capabilities, along with configurable workflows and completion tracking tools, helped organise project documentation and support a smooth transition from construction to operations.
InEight modules used: Document
