Putting our BESS foot forward

Every now and then, a project comes along that feels like a real turning point. For our EC Electrical & Instrumentation (E&I) team, the Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) installation at Fortescue’s North Star Junction (NSJ) was exactly that - a first for Monadelphous and another big step toward supporting our customers’ decarbonisation goals.

Delivering our first BESS project was the result of years of learning, planning and building capability across our business. It meant working in a fast‑paced environment, getting used to new systems and teaming up across different groups in ways our team hadn’t needed to before.

From day one on site, the strength of the project was all about how well our E&I team worked together. The team handled everything across both the Western and Eastern BESS blocks - installing and tying in the battery containers, the Power Conversion Station (PCS) skids, switchboards, 36 kilometres of cabling, earthing, lighting, and all the communications gear that keeps it talking to the wider network.

They also got all the major electrical infrastructure up and running, including the Control Room, Power Distribution Centres (PDCs), and the marshalling panels that link everything together and a 33kV powerline. Over at Junction Camp, the crew completed all the integration work, including installation of the isolation transformer and connecting it into the main switchboard. Once the system is fully online, this will allow the camp to be powered through the BESS which allows the camp generators to be decommissioned making the camp completely run on sustainable energy.

One of the standout moments was installing all 48 batteries and their modules in just three days, a job originally scheduled for five. With support from Heavy Lift, who safely placed the major equipment, the team delivered this milestone and set the pace for the rest of the project. It was one of those “when everyone’s pulling together, this is what’s possible” moments.

Getting the PCS units in place, the brains of the whole system, marked another huge achievement. Their successful installation showed not just physical progress, but our team’s ability to deliver complex, grid connected renewable energy infrastructure.

Project Manager Michael Sinclair summed it up as new territory, where everyone had to learn fast and really rely on each other.

“The E&I team stepped up in a big way, and seeing our first BESS system delivered successfully showed what we can achieve when our people are aligned and committed to delivering something new,” he said.

Construction Manager - E&I, Jamie Judge, shared the same sentiment.

“The collaboration across the project was outstanding. Everyone knew how important this was for Fortescue, and that shared focus made all the difference,” he said.

Being part of Fortescue’s first big battery installation is something everyone involved should be proud of. NSJ proved our team can confidently step into new work and genuinely support our customer’s sustainability goals, providing experience that will carry through to the renewable work still to come.

NSJ opened the door, and the team is already rolling straight into the next BESS project at Eliwana.