daily · Grid & Storage

AER remakes Waratah battery revenue terms, with trading income shared with consumers

The October 8 decision extends the project and payment schedule and changes revenue adjustments. Consumer sharing is not a quantified household bill cut.

By Greener Numbers Editorial Team · Published October 12, 2026 · Updated 10/12/2026

The Australian Energy Regulator said on October 8 that it has remade two revenue determinations for the Waratah Super Battery project in New South Wales. The decision concerns the Paired Generation Service and System Integrity Protection Scheme Battery Service components. It follows a proposal from network operator Transgrid, not a new battery construction announcement.

The remade determinations reflect amended contractual arrangements. They extend the project term and the corresponding schedule of payments and introduce new or amended revenue adjustment mechanisms. The regulator's notice does not give a new end date or a dollar amount for household savings.

The changes allow the battery to operate more dynamically by trading in the energy market while still meeting energy security requirements. The AER says revenue earned from energy trading is shared with consumers, reducing future service charges and the battery's total cost. This describes the revenue mechanism, not an observed reduction on each customer's bill.

The regulator plans to publish an adjusted, aggregated payment schedule around June 2027. That future schedule is expected to include annual adjustments made before publication, including any adjustment for the delay in reaching commercial operation. The current announcement does not settle those future figures.

The project aims to increase power transfer capacity on transmission lines connecting generation in northern and southern New South Wales with Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong. It has four components; this decision remakes the two contestable service determinations rather than all four components.

Limits: the regulator says it considered consistency with the minister's direction, the original competitive assessment and consumer benefits. The decision is a contractual and regulated-revenue change. It does not establish new generating capacity, a particular retail tariff, a guaranteed household saving or a current outage forecast.

Official source: aer.gov.au ↗