Hydrostor opens regional HQ in Australia to advance energy storage project

Clean energy innovator Hydrostor is opening two offices in Australia to support its expanding operations in the country, including a first-of-its-kind energy storage project for Australia.

The Canadian company is opening its Asia-Pacific and Australian head office in Melbourne. It will also open an office in Adelaide later this year to support its energy storage project.

Hydrostor chose Victoria as its Asia-Pacific base due to the state’s strong R&D capabilities, thriving renewable energy sector, commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2045 and government support.

Transforming a mine into one of the world’s largest compressed air projects

Hydrostor is the owner and developer of the Silver City Energy Storage Centre. The project, the first of its kind in Australia, will repurpose a disused mine in Broken Hill, New South Wales to store compressed air.

Once built, the A$652 million project will be one of the world’s largest compressed air projects. It will produce 200 MW of power and store up to 8 hours of energy.

Using Hydrostor’s Advanced Compressed Air Energy Storage (A-CAES) solution, Silver City will abate nearly 13 million metric tons of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. This is the equivalent of removing more than 50,000 cars from the road each year of operation. During the 50+-year project life, Silver City will provide an emission-free solution to the community in Broken Hill.

The project received A$45 million in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) as part of its Advancing Renewables Program. It will create over 350 full-time equivalent peak construction jobs, with most of these workers from the Broken Hill region.

‘Compressed air energy storage is a vital component of the clean energy transition to achieve net-zero emissions,’ says Hydrostor’s CEO Curtis VanWalleghem. ‘We are committed to bringing low-impact solutions to communities throughout Australia.’

Supporting the transition to net zero with emission-free energy storage

Hydrostor is a leading emission-free energy storage developer. The company’s A-CAES technology offers an alternative to Pumped Hydro Energy Storage for bulk long-term energy storage.

The A-CAES technology produces heated compressed air using low-priced electricity from the grid. The compressed air is stored in a purpose-built underground cavern. During times of high demand, a turbine converts the compressed air into electricity.

How Austrade helped

Hydrostor received support from Austrade to progress its investments in Australia. Austrade provided the company with market insights and opportunities, arranged introductions and meetings with stakeholders, and invited Hydrostor to key industry events.