WINNER - 2025 Outstanding Industrial Electrification Project
Congratulations to MGA Thermal for winning the award for Outstanding Industrial Electrification Project in our 2025 Australian Renewable Heat Awards.
The Awards recognise the innovative work out there which is leading the transition to renewable heat and setting the benchmarks for projects that follow.
Learn more about this winning project below.
MGA Thermal Latent Heat Demonstration Project
Industry sector: Industrial demonstration project
Location: Tomago NSW
Completed: April 2024
Project partners:
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MGA Thermal
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Uniquip Engineering
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MCM Manufacturing
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Varley Group
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Australian Renewable Energy Agency
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Shell
Project summary
After more than ten years of development and breakthrough materials science, MGA Thermal has delivered the world’s first steam-integrated, latent heat electrothermal energy storage (ETES) system. The project is of commercial scale, with 5 MWh of thermal storage capacity and capable of dispatching 500 kW of thermal power as superheated steam at 365oC and 37 bar.
Powering the ETES is their patented Miscibility Gap Allow (MGA) blocks. They uniquely offer the benefits of a phase change material with the elegance of a solid-state block. This latent heat technology significantly outperforms conventional sensible heat thermal storage offerings, offering a viable pathway to continuous renewable heat, around the clock.
The project has been in operation since April 2025.
The heating challenge addressed by the project
Heavy industry has a problem that’s been hiding in plain sight: while industrial heating accounts for 20% of Australia’s end-use energy, approximately 90% of this is supplied by fossil fuels. While the electricity sector has seen significant decarbonisation through wind and solar, there are limited technology pathways to decarbonise high temperature process heat.
Until now, there has not been a commercially or technically viable way of electrifying high-temperature process heat. Renewables like wind and solar, while abundant and low-cost, are inherently intermittent. This is a challenge for many industrial sectors like alumina, chemical, dairy and packaging, which often operate around the clock with high thermal loads.
MGA’s Dr Erich Kisi and Dr Alex Post at the University of Newcastle recognised this gap and asked: What if the key isn’t how we generate energy, but how we store and use it? Their research led to the development of novel alloy composites that can store massive amounts of energy through internal phase change.This innovation formed the basis of MGA Thermal’s technology — a cost effective, scalable and reliable thermal storage material, designed with the optimal properties for thermal energy storage. This fills a critical gap in the path to net zero: delivering zero-emissions process heat for the hardest to abate sectors.
The technologies featured in this project
At the heart of the ETES system are our patented Miscibility Gap Alloy (MGA) blocks, designed to store energy as latent heat. MGA Blocks are designed with the optimal properties for thermal energy storage including high energy capacity, high thermal conductivity, high compressive strength and high durability. The blocks operate at high temperatures, handle continuous thermal loads, and retain performance over thousands of charge–discharge cycles.
This latent heat technology significantly outperforms conventional sensible heat thermal storage, offering two to three times higher energy density and stable power output over the entire discharge cycle. These ultimately lead to a lower capex, superior performance and lower energy costs.
At the system level, ETES is a firming technology, storing intermittent renewable energy with long duration energy storage capacity. During charging, electric resistive heating elements convert electricity to heat. The heat is absorbed by the MGA Blocks, which are housed inside an insulated, mild steel enclosure which can be scaled to the required storage duration. During discharge, a nitrogen gas loop transfers heat from the blocks to an off-the-shelf heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) to generate high-grade process heat at up to 550oC and high pressure.
Today, most industrial grade process heat is supplied through the combustion of fossil fuels, which historically been a secure and affordable source of energy. However, there has been increasing price volatility and growing energy security challenges for fossil fuels over the past 10 years. Governments, shareholders, boards and customers are also demanding that industrials reduce operational emissions. These factors mean that the use of fossil fuels for industrial heat is becomingly increasingly unviable, and industrials are looking for viable low-carbon alternatives.
ETES can be used to directly displace steam generation from fossil fuel boilers, or can be used in a hybrid system and supplemented with fossil fuel steam generation for backup power. Unlike many decarbonisation solutions that demand costly infrastructure overhauls, MGA’s ETES technology is retrofit-ready and meets industries where they are. It integrates into existing industrial setups, connecting into current steam loops and heat processes with minimal disruption. It’s modular and scalable — from 5 MWh modular systems supporting individual facilities to gigawatt-hour-scale deployments serving entire industrial precincts.
Results and benefits from this project
MGA Thermal’s 5 MWh demonstration unit marked a world-first, commercial proof that latent heat can be stored and dispatched on demand — reliably, affordably, and at industrial scale. Housed in a compact demonstration unit (measuring 12m long, 3m wide, 4m tall), the system stores 5 MWh of energy with a 500 kW thermal dispatch power — enough to produce superheated steam for 24 hours straight, or power over 270 homes for the same duration.
The project has been in operations since April 2025. We have successfully validated that the system can deliver superheated steam at the design specification of 365 degrees Celsius and 37 bar.
We have completed accelerated cyclic testing of the blocks for 3,650 cycles – the equivalent of 10 years of operations – and observed minimal degradation of the blocks over time.
The project is capable of delivering over 1,800 MWh of thermal energy per annum at 1 cycle per day. An equivalent sized natural gas boiler would produce approximately 360 tonnes of CO2 for the same energy output.
Special innovations in this project
At its core are MGA Thermal’s patented Miscibility Gap Alloy (MGA) blocks - solid-state block-based phase change materials that deliver two to three times the energy density of traditional thermal storage technologies. This unique composition allows for a stable outlet temperature throughout the discharge cycle. Unlike traditional sensible heat systems, this ensures consistent power output, without performance degradation.
The modular design of MGA blocks enables seamless scalability. Like Lego bricks, they stack to form systems ranging from 5 MWh to gigawatt-hour-scale installations. This flexibility makes the technology suitable for a wide range of applications, from small-scale deployments to large refineries.
Fast-response resistive heating elements react to control signals in under 100 milliseconds—matching the responsiveness of lithium-ion batteries. This opens up new revenue opportunities through grid services, enhancing the system’s economic viability.
A key innovation is the decoupling of charging and discharging processes. This allows the system to simultaneously charge and discharge, enabling a continuous 24/7 supply of steam. Industrial sites can operate uninterrupted, maximising productivity and reliability.
Maintenance is streamlined through hot-swappable resistive heating elements, which can be replaced without halting operations. This minimises downtime and ensures consistent performance, even during repairs.
Together, these features position MGA Thermal’s system as a transformative solution for clean, reliable, and scalable energy storage—paving the way for decarbonised industrial heat and grid stability.
Funding received for this project
In 2022, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) awarded MGA Thermal $1.27 million through its Advancing Renewables Program. In 2024, ARENA nearly tripled its support with a further $2.48 million to fund the build and commissioning of our demonstration unit, a clear signal of confidence in MGA’s potential to deliver dispatchable, zero-emissions steam for heavy industry.
In 2023, MGA Thermal was also down-selected as the only party to receive A$560,000 from Shell through its GameChanger program to accelerate the demonstration project.
Overall, MGA Thermal has raised $32.18 million in funding through a mix of federal grant support, private investment, and commercial partnerships - a strong vote of confidence in our potential to drive industrial decarbonisation and long-duration energy storage at scale.