GE Vernova Wins Supernode Stage 3 Contract as Queensland Battery Campus Reaches 780 MW

GE Vernova announced on August 21, 2026, that Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners has selected it to provide power conversion, controls and integration technology for Stage 3 of the Supernode battery project in Queensland, Australia. The Supernode Stage 3 battery storage expansion will add 260 MW/1,216 MWh of four-hour storage and introduce GE Vernova’s grid-forming battery technology at a site positioned at a major point in Queensland’s transmission network.

With Stage 3, the completed Supernode development is expected to reach approximately 780 MW and 3,075 MWh of battery storage at a single site. Stages 1 and 2 are already operating with a combined 520 MW/1,858 MWh, while Stage 3 has achieved Generator Performance Standards acceptance, an important Australian grid-connection milestone.

GE Vernova will supply the conversion and control systems

GE Vernova said in its August 21 announcement that it will provide the Stage 3 power conversion system, plant controls, system integration and grid-connection support.

The latest contract expands the company’s role across all three Supernode stages. GE Vernova was previously selected for integration work on Stages 1 and 2, including power conditioning systems, plant controllers, SCADA equipment and grid-connection engineering.

Stage 3’s 260 MW power rating and 1,216 MWh energy capacity equate to roughly 4.7 hours of storage at maximum rated output based on the announced figures. GE Vernova describes the expansion as four-hour storage, reflecting the project’s contracted and operational configuration.

Grid-forming technology expands the battery’s system role

A notable feature of the Supernode Stage 3 battery storage project is its planned use of grid-forming technology, which GE Vernova says will be its first grid-forming BESS project in Australia.

Grid-forming inverters can establish and regulate electrical voltage and frequency rather than simply following an existing grid waveform. That capability can allow inverter-based resources to contribute services traditionally associated with synchronous generators, including frequency response and system-strength support.

GE Vernova said Stage 3 has already secured Generator Performance Standards acceptance. In Australia’s National Electricity Market, that milestone establishes the technical performance requirements a generating or storage facility must satisfy when connecting to the power system.

The technology is particularly relevant as Queensland adds more inverter-based solar, wind and battery resources and reduces reliance on conventional synchronous generation for some grid-stability functions.

Supernode’s first two stages are already operating

Quinbrook announced on July 28 that Stage 2 had completed construction and entered commercial operation, bringing Stages 1 and 2 to a combined 520 MW/1,858 MWh.

Quinbrook said those two stages together constitute the largest operating battery energy storage facility in Australia’s National Electricity Market. Stage 2 operates under a long-term tolling agreement with Origin Energy.

Stage 3 has separate long-term commercial backing. Quinbrook previously secured an offtake agreement with Queensland government-owned energy company Stanwell and in July announced financial close on A$469 million of debt financing for the third stage.

The site links energy storage with digital infrastructure

Supernode is unusual because Quinbrook has designed the location as both an energy and digital-infrastructure campus.

Quinbrook describes Supernode as being directly connected to Queensland’s high-voltage grid and co-located with the Torus dark-fibre network and an international subsea data link.

The developer says the site retains capacity for another 520 MW of development that could include additional battery storage, data centers or a combination of the two. No additional 520 MW development should be considered committed based on the current Stage 3 announcement.

The location nevertheless demonstrates the increasingly direct relationship between high-capacity grid connections, energy storage and digital infrastructure as developers search for sites capable of supporting large electricity loads.

Supernode is becoming a major Queensland grid asset

Large batteries can respond rapidly to changes in electricity supply and demand, allowing them to shift energy between periods while also supporting grid frequency and stability.

GE Vernova said Supernode’s position within Queensland’s transmission network allows the batteries to act as a buffer, storing electricity when supply is abundant and returning it when demand increases or renewable production changes.

The explicit reliability and grid-stability role is significant. Supernode is not being developed only as an energy-arbitrage asset; its controls and grid-forming capability are intended to provide technical services to the power system as Queensland’s generation mix changes.

What happens next

Construction and commissioning of Stage 3 remain ahead. Quinbrook’s current project materials indicate completion is expected during 2027.

The project has already passed several major development milestones, including financial close, a long-term offtake arrangement and Generator Performance Standards acceptance.

Once Stage 3 is operating, Supernode is expected to comprise approximately 780 MW of battery capacity across the three stages, making the site one of Australia’s largest concentrated battery-storage developments.

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The Microgrid Media Editorial Desk reports on microgrids, energy storage, grid modernization, data center power demand, distributed energy resources, and energy policy. Reporting published under the Editorial Desk byline is developed from primary regulatory records, utility filings, government documents, company disclosures, and independently verifiable sources, and is reviewed under Microgrid Media’s editorial standards.

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