The New England megaproject just became even more mega, and is now set to house a 1.4 GW / 2.8 GWh battery – taking the crown for Australia’s biggest battery. Developer ACEN Australia says the NSW government has approved its expanded battery proposal, which is set to go in next door to its 720 MW New England Solar project.

A global race is underway to capture the manufacturing market for clean energy technologies. While lady lucky has certainly shone on Australia, competition is fierce, experts say.

Despite their promise, adoption rates of Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) in Australia have been underwhelming. Head of Renewable Energy Finance at Plenti, Louis Edwards, says the issue stems from VPP operator’s overlooking their point of sale. “It’s too much risk the installer takes and they don’t do it,” he tells pv magazine Australia.

Queensland has opened its first Queensland SuperGrid Training Centre and Transmission Hub in Gladstone. The facility is expected to train 500 energy workers annually in a range of areas, including high voltage technical training.

GemLife, which describes itself as “luxury resort living for the over-50s,” has set up its own Virtual Power Plant (VPP), and is set to invest $75 million in coming years to rollout the VPPs across more than 10,000 homes in its property portfolio on Australia’s east coast.

Queensland flow battery company, Redflow, has commissioned a 30 kWh zinc-bromine flow battery for the Brisbane City Council.

The Clean Energy Regulator has, for the first time, sought to disqualify a solar installer from the small-scale renewable energy scheme (SRES), effectively Australia’s solar rebate program. It has also commenced civil proceedings against a solar and electrical installation company and its two directors.

The numbers behind headlines of billion dollar cost blowouts and delays to New South Wales’ energy transformation appear foggy at best, with unexamined sources seemingly leading to widespread misreporting.

To reach net zero by 2050, Australia will need 300 GW of wind and solar, and $413 billion (USD 2.72 billion) of investment, according to BloombergNEF. To reach hydrogen superpower status, that figure balloons to 812 GW of renewables and $739 billion of investment.

The ACT government has awarded over a million dollars to support the commercialisation of technologies from six upcoming renewable companies. Round three of the territory’s $12 million innovation fund includes support for a startup which has developed a 3D printer capable of printing electronics.