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Gingerah Energy has referred a proposed 1GW data centre and 5,000MWh battery energy storage system in Western Australia for assessment under the federal EPBC Act. The referral is an early environmental review step, not an approval; the project also needs state and local approvals.
Gingerah Energy has referred a proposed 1GW data centre with a 5,000MWh battery energy storage system in Western Australia for consideration under Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act. The referral asks the federal government to determine whether the project could affect matters of national environmental significance; it is not an approval to build.
The project is planned for a site of about 27,520 hectares. Its referral sets out a potential maximum disturbance footprint of up to 18,203 hectares, or about 66% of the site. Gingerah Energy expects the area actually cleared to be smaller, according to the referral. The company said it made the referral because listed threatened species may be present in the project area.
The data centre would be developed in stages tied to IT load: 48MW, 120MW, 240MW, 620MW and 1,000MW. Gingerah Energy says the first stage, reaching up to 240MW, would be built and commissioned progressively over two to three years. The federal referral covers the first and second stages.
The proposal describes an internal power system rather than a connection to an external grid. Electricity would move through an on-site microgrid with overhead transmission lines, substations and underground electrical infrastructure. The battery would be accompanied by cold-water energy storage for the data centre’s closed-loop cooling system, as well as dispatchable firming facilities and fuel storage. The referral does not identify the battery technology, a supplier or the project’s cost.
A Large Power Load With On-Site Storage
The proposal combines a potential 1GW data centre load with a large battery system and internal power infrastructure. That design could shape how the facility sources and manages electricity, but the referral does not establish how much power the project would generate, what fuels its firming facilities would use or whether it would connect to the wider grid.
The project is also advancing as Australian governments debate requirements for data centres’ energy supply. The Australian Energy Market Operator has forecast that data centres could account for about 10% of National Electricity Market demand by 2050, compared with about 2% today. Western Australia is outside that market, so the national debate provides policy context rather than determining this project’s approvals.
For nearby communities and regulators, the scale of the proposed site and potential disturbance makes environmental review consequential. The EPBC referral means federal authorities will consider whether national environmental matters require formal assessment. It does not establish that threatened species are present or that the project will receive consent.
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Land Agreements and Approval Path
Gingerah Energy is a joint venture that includes the Karajarri Traditional Lands Association (KTLA), the registered native title body for the Karajarri people, and Fugro Exploration, the Australian arm of Dutch geodata company Fugro. The Karajarri Native Title Holders authorised KTLA on 11 October 2024 to sign an Indigenous Land Use Agreement with Gingerah Energy. The agreement was registered with the National Native Title Tribunal in March 2025 and provides consent in relation to native title for the project.
KTLA holds the Frazier Downs pastoral lease, which covers the site. An application to convert part of the lease to a tenure suited to renewable energy development was lodged with Western Australia’s Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage on 5 September 2025 and remains under assessment, according to the source report. The project also requires state environmental approval under Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Act and development approval from the Shire of Broome. Gingerah Energy said it would consider whether the project qualifies for the State Development Act 2025 framework for projects of strategic significance.
The site was previously listed in CSIRO’s HyResource database as a hydrogen and ammonia export project before Gingerah Energy repositioned it around data centre infrastructure. The federal referral is therefore one part of a broader approval process, alongside land-tenure, state environmental and local development decisions.
“Listed threatened species may be present on the site.”
— Gingerah Energy, as described in the EPBC referral
Environmental Review and Project Design
The federal government’s decision on whether the proposal requires formal assessment and approval is not stated in the source material. The referral itself is an early step and does not mean the project has been approved. The presence, location and potential effects on threatened species also remain to be determined through the relevant review.
Several project details are not provided: the battery’s technology and supplier, the overall project cost, the configuration and fuel source of the dispatchable firming facilities, and the eventual clearing area. The referral does not describe an external grid connection, but that alone does not resolve how the project’s power supply or any future grid arrangements may develop. State and local approval outcomes, as well as the land-tenure application, remain pending.
Federal and Western Australian Decisions
The immediate next step is for the federal government to consider the EPBC referral and decide whether the proposal could affect matters of national environmental significance in a way that requires formal assessment. The source material does not give a decision date or timetable for that process.
Separately, the tenure-conversion application remains with the Western Australian Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage. The project would also need state environmental and Shire of Broome development approvals before construction could proceed. Gingerah Energy’s consideration of the State Development Act framework is another possible step, not a confirmed designation. Until those decisions and further project details are available, the schedule, final footprint and construction plan remain unsettled.
Key Questions
Has the data centre been approved?
No. The EPBC referral is an early step that asks the federal government to consider whether formal environmental assessment is needed. It is not permission to build.
How large is the proposed battery?
The referral describes a battery energy storage system with 5,000MWh of storage capacity. It does not name the technology or supplier.
Where would the project get its power?
The referral describes an internal microgrid using overhead lines, on-site substations and underground electrical infrastructure, along with battery storage, cold-water energy storage and dispatchable firming facilities. It does not describe a connection to an external grid or specify the firming fuel.
What other approvals are required?
In addition to the federal process, the project needs state environmental approval under Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Act and development approval from the Shire of Broome. An application to convert part of the pastoral lease to renewable-energy-suitable tenure is also under assessment.
Source: energy-storage.news
