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WA’s grid is changing faster than most realise, and the evening peak is where the challenge bites. We sit down with Frontier Energy CEO Adam Kiley to explore how the Waroona Renewable Energy Project—120 MW of solar paired with a 6.9‑hour, 81.5 MW battery—aims to serve the 4 pm to 10 pm window that coal and gas used to cover. With a prime location only 500 metres from the Landwehr Terminal and a connection to 330 kV lines, Waroona is built on strong grid bones that support both Stage One delivery and future expansion.

Adam unpacks the numbers driving confidence: a guaranteed $32 million per annum from WA’s reserve capacity mechanism over the first five years, independent banker‑case models reflecting record‑high wholesale prices, and a clear pathway to 60–70% project debt. We dig into the macro: around 6.6 TWh per year of retiring coal and older gas, plus 3.5 TWh of new demand by 2031, creating an 11 TWh hole on a 22 TWh grid. Rather than waiting on long, costly transmission build‑outs, Frontier’s strategy co‑locates generation and storage at a strong node to shift midday sun into night-time supply when prices and reliability needs are highest.

We also talk execution: updated financials and technical expert reports for lenders, equipment contracting, and the timeline to final investment decision. Then we look at what’s next—an accelerated Stage Two study with similar scale, backed by 830 hectares of controlled land, approvals to amend, and a focus on replicable revenue certainty. If you care about clean baseload, peak-hour pricing, and practical solutions to the SWIS transition, this conversation lays out how firmed renewables can deliver.

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