Rio Tinto and Rondo Energy Break Ground on Australia's Largest Industrial Thermal Energy Storage Project

## Rio Tinto and Rondo Energy Advance Landmark Thermal Storage Project in Gladstone Mining and metals giant Rio Tinto has partnered with clean energy technology firm Rondo Energy to progress what is being described as Australia's largest thermal energy storage project, with front-end engineering and design (FEED) work now officially underway at Gladstone, Queensland. According to a joint announcement issued on 20 October 2026, the project centres on the deployment of a Rondo Heat Battery with a capacity of 360 MWh of storage and a 30 MW discharge rate. The initiative has secured grant funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), underscoring the project's strategic importance to Australia's industrial decarbonisation agenda. ### Significance for Heavy Industry Decarbonisation Gladstone is one of Australia's most energy-intensive industrial hubs, home to aluminium smelting, liquefied natural gas processing, and port operations that serve bulk commodity exports. The deployment of large-scale thermal energy storage at this location carries implications well beyond the immediate project, potentially serving as a replicable model for decarbonising process heat demand across the resources and maritime supply chain sectors. Rondo's Heat Battery technology works by converting renewable electricity into high-temperature industrial heat, which is then stored and dispatched on demand. This approach directly targets one of the most challenging segments of industrial emissions — process heat — which has historically been difficult to electrify at scale. ### ARENA Backing Signals Policy Momentum ARINA's financial support reflects the Australian government's broader push to accelerate the commercialisation of clean industrial technologies. For port-adjacent industries and maritime supply chains reliant on Gladstone's export infrastructure, the project signals a gradual but meaningful shift in how energy-intensive operations may be powered in the coming decade. ### Next Steps The completion of the FEED phase will determine the technical and commercial parameters required to proceed to a final investment decision. If the project advances to full construction, it would represent a landmark deployment of grid-scale thermal storage in an Australian industrial setting and could attract further investment in clean energy infrastructure across the Gladstone industrial precinct. Industry observers will be watching closely as the FEED process unfolds, particularly given the potential for similar technologies to be applied at other energy-intensive port and industrial facilities across the Indo-Pacific region.