Byellee BESS

The Byellee Bess project is progressing through the development application approval process.  

The Planning (Battery Storage Facilities) and Other Legislation Amendment Regulation 2025 has recently taken effect on Friday 12^th December 2025. Given the changes, the development application, which had been lodged with Gladstone Regional Council, will now be made to the State Assessment and Referral Agency (SARA). The process to lodge an application with SARA is underway. The grid connection process is progressing with Powerlink.  

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We are committed to transparent, open and proactive consultation with Gladstone Regional Council, local stakeholders, community members and near neighbours to share information about the proposed project. In ealry May, 2025 the project team visited nearby neighbours to personally introduce the project and held a pop-up stall at the local IGA in Gladstone handing out information leaflets about Byellee BESS. We also held a community drop-in session on August 2 at the Gladstone Convention Centre and had a stall at the Curtis Markets on August 3. Both were great opportunities to speak with local residents about the development process of the project as well as any potential risks and mitigations measures. We will continue to consult with the greater Gladstone community over the coming months and provide updates about the project.

Aside from more secure energy supply at a time when electricity consumption is ever increasing while energy infrastructure is aging, Byellee BESS will establish a benefit sharing program to support local not-for profits and fund projects or initiatives of importance and value to the local community that align with and have a positive impact on the environment, social connectedness as well as employment and education. We welcome your input on the scope and priorities of what is required.In due course, we will invite local not-for-profits and community organisations to contribute to the program design that we call Powering Big Dreams by getting in touch and applying via this website.

During the peak of construction, we estimate approximately 100-150 jobs will support the project, with about six jobs ongoing throughout the operations of Byellee BESS.

Energy storage solutions that are available in the market are specifically designed to manage and mitigate fire risk and they operate with comprehensive safety features in both the hardware and software technology. Battery suppliers have innovated and invested significantly in fire suppression and management systems to mitigate and contain fire risk, the industry and technology innovation has benefited from the significant volume of large-scale batteries being deployed around the world. Lithium-Ion batteries, if damaged or faulty, can experience a thermal runaway event which may result in a fire. Put in the simplest of terms, thermal runaway in lithium-ion batteries is an overheating of the battery cell which results in a chemical reaction. This process occurs when the temperature within the battery cell exceeds a certain point - that is, the heat generated is greater than the heat that is dispersed. Battery energy storage system include a range of measures to mitigate a fire from starting (monitors, sensors, alerts, HVAC controls) to ensure that the batter is operated within its safe limits. Utility scale batteries that are being constructed in Australia are designed to meet industry-leading safety standards, such as UL9540, UL9540A, and IEC compliance. Delivering safe, secure and reliable storage system to the energy market is a key focus of Eku Energy and our procurement processes ensure the systems we deliver are consistent with global best practice. We will work closely with the local fire department to ensure the design and operation of the battery does not introduce any operational risks. This includes ensuring that any management responses and actions meet protocols from the local authorities.