Tender 8 of the Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) for the National Electricity Market (NEM) is now open.
This round will add 16 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of clean, dispatchable energy storage, such as batteries, to the NEM. That is enough to power the peak load of 3.7 million homes for 4 hours.
The CIS is now accepting aggregated projects into the bidding process, reflecting the growing role of smaller businesses in Australia's renewable energy market.
For this tender, aggregated projects refer to bids comprised of multiple stand-alone dispatchable projects, that together will deliver between 5 and 30 megawatts (MW) to the NEM.
This tender will build on the success of previous rounds, with 18.8 GW announced so far and a further 7.2 GW currently out in active tenders.
Announced CIS projects to date have commitments to deliver over $37 billion in:
- local employment
- local expenditure
- community benefits
- First Nations benefits.
Registration is essential for Proponents to be able to submit a Bid in this Tender and will close on 23 January 2026.
Bid Submissions will close on 6 February 2026, with all key Tender 8 dates available in the Tender Guidelines.
Visit the Tender 8 webpage on the ASL website to read the:
- Tender Guidelines, including eligibility and merit criteria
- draft Capacity Investment Scheme Agreement.
The CIS is a cornerstone of the Australian Government's plan to deliver 82% renewables by 2030. It aims to deliver 40 GW of new renewable capacity across Australia, supported by gas, storage and transmission.
