Advanced Control Solution for an Innovative Battery Energy Storage System

ComAp partnered with Horizon Power, Western Australia’s State Government-owned regional and remote energy provider, to deliver a battery energy storage system (BESS) control solution for a trial project. Horizon Power supplies electricity to more than 36,000 residential and 9,000 business customers, including resource developments and remote communities across one of the largest service areas in the world. The company recognised the need to evaluate new energy storage technologies for use in islanded and remote networks.

As part of this initiative, Horizon Power set out to test the VSUN Invinity Vanadium Redox Flow Battery (VRFB) and determine its suitability for long-duration storage applications. The project required integration of the VRFB with a Delta PCS100HV inverter system and balance-of-plant equipment, along with a supervisory control solution capable of managing multiple subsystems as one. ComAp’s InteliNeo 530 BESS controller was selected to fulfil this role, with its capability and functionality to be validated throughout the trial.

In collaboration with Horizon Power, ComAp Australia provided a fully engineered solution including configuration and programming of the InteliNeo 530 BESS, cable schedules, general arrangement drawings, and a project-specific application guide. Factory Acceptance Testing was carried out at VSUN’s Kwinana facility, followed by on-site commissioning. This involved primary and auxiliary system testing, overall BESS functionality checks, Automatic Dispatch function testing, and handover training for Horizon Power’s team.

With the InetilNeo 530 BESS in place, the BESS now operates autonomously on-grid 24/7 with minimal operator interaction. The controller sequences start/stop operations, establishes a dynamic operating envelope, and actively monitors the state of charge to ensure smooth and reliable performance.

As a result, Horizon Power has a fully commissioned BESS that has been operating successfully for more than eight months. The project not only enables Horizon Power to validate flow battery performance, but also provides a flexible testbed for trialling different battery chemistries and Power Conversion System (PCS) combinations under one control philosophy.