Transgrid believes prospective grid upgrades mean that New South Wales could be powered by as much as 100% renewable energy. Credit: Ian Waldie/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Australian energy grid operator Transgrid has announced a A$16bn (US$11bn) investment to secure grid development and renewable energy uptake in New South Wales (NSW).

Transgrid, which operates the NSW power grid, laid out the road map that it says will grow the grid and secure up to 100% renewable energy operation over the next decade.

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The first phase of the road map will see A$14bn allocated towards building around 2,500km of transmission lines and infrastructure required to connect renewable generators across the region. This will include the “Southern Superhighway”, a trio of Transgrid projects that, combined, will add 1,600km of transmission lines. The 900km Energy Connect, 360km HumeLink and 600km VNI West projects, totalling A$7bn in investment, will all be connected alongside further projects yet to be announced.

The second tenet of Transgrid’s road map will be to upgrade the energy security of the projects in line with the change from coal-fired power to renewables. Transgrid estimates this will require A$2.2bn to source more than 15GW of grid storage, including 10GW of battery capacity.

Transgrid’s third step will see it invest A$300m to upgrade the operational and analytic capabilities of its systems in order to be able to cope with a more complex grid system. This will include not just constructing new technology but also training and employing more staff.

“The only way to bring energy prices down is to deliver cheaper renewable energy as soon as possible,” said Transgrid CEO Brett Redman. “Transgrid must build and operate the backbone of this new grid while ensuring the safety, reliability and security of our existing 13,000km transmission system.”

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Redman continued: “With over 80% of coal-fired capacity in NSW expected to retire and 28GW of new renewable and storage capacity coming online in the next ten years, we must urgently accelerate the investment in all areas of the energy transition.”