A massive battery has been proposed for a historic ACT sheep farm that once welcomed an American president.
Queensland energy transition company Quinbrook has made an application to build a 520-megawatt battery system on Uriarra Station, about 30 kilometres north-west of Canberra's centre.
The Flat Rock Energy Storage project is proposed for the 1194-hectare farm at 2028 Uriarra Road, Coree, one of the region's most successful sheep and cattle properties with the capacity to run about 7000 sheep.
Project infrastructure would include a battery energy storage system across two areas, an overhead transmission line, two substations, a water crossing and several small internal roads, according to the application made under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.
The battery capacity would be almost twice as big as the planned Territory Battery south of Holt, which is 300 megawatts, and double the capacity of the Big Canberra Battery in Williamsdale.
Construction is expected to take about 36 months, with the battery operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week once operational. The system is expected to operate for up to 50 years, after which time it would be removed and the disturbance footprint rehabilitated.
The battery system's disturbance footprint would cover 60 hectares of primarily non-native and "very low-condition" native grassland.
The project could have a direct impact on threatened species including the Gang-gang cockatoo and the Superb parrot, the application said. However, this would be limited to the disturbance of low-grade foraging habitat.
"The disturbance footprint provides low condition potential foraging habitat only, in the form of non-native grassland characterised by pasture degraded due to historical agricultural use," the application said.
Long-time owners Anthony and Helen Griffin listed Uriarra Station for sale in May 2025 after almost three decades on the property. The historic home has hosted foreign dignitaries, including former United States president Richard Nixon in October 1953, to teach them about Australian farming.
The applicants argued the project is not a controlled action under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. A controlled action is likely to have a significant impact on protected flora, fauna or landscapes, and requires further assessment before it can be approved by the federal environment minister.
The land is zoned as rural under the Territory Plan and would not require a zoning change. It is used for sheep and cattle grazing, with Uriarra Creek running through part of the land.
Alternative sites in the ACT and NSW were too far from existing electricity lines and would require long transmission lines and easements, the application said.
Comments on whether the application constitutes a controlled action are open until August 12 on the EPBC Act portal.
