Fortescue delivers first BYD grid-scale battery to green Pilbara operations
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The news: Iron ore giant Fortescue has delivered its first large scale BYD battery energy storage system at its North Star Junction solar farm near Port Hedland, which is supplying power to its iron ore operations in the Pilbara, Western Australia.
The numbers: The installation of 48 energy storage containers provides storage capacity of 250 megawatt hours (MWh) of energy and is capable of delivering 50 megawatts of power for five hours. Power will be delivered to Fortescue’s Pilbara Energy Connect network overnight.
The context: BYD blade batteries have been installed at the site which feature liquid cooling systems designed to operate in the temperatures and conditions experienced in the Pilbara.
It is the first installation of a broader 4-5 gigawatt-hour rollout of large-scale storage systems needed to decarbonise Fortescue’s Pilbara iron ore operation.
Fortescue’s next battery energy storage system will have a 120MWh capacity and be delivered at its Eliwana mine site in early 2026.
What they said: “Fortescue is leading one of the most ambitious mining decarbonisation programs in the world, and BYD is proud to support this transformation,” BYD energy and new battery application general manager Yin Xueqin said.
“The NSJ BESS is an important milestone for our partnership, and we will continue working closely with Fortescue to deliver the large-scale storage needed to power a green Pilbara.”
The source: Fortescue media release
