Australia’s shift to zero-emissions vehicles is accelerating with a new report revealing that electric vehicles sales more doubled in the first half of 2023 with battery-powered vehicles accounting for more than 8% of all new car sales.

Horizon Power, Western Australia’s regional power provider, will deploy a 78 kW/220 kWh vanadium flow battery in the state’s north as it seeks to increase its understanding of how the Australian-born technology can be best utilised to support long periods of 100% renewable energy supply in regional and remote areas.

The Victorian government has announced a new $10 million (USD 6.7 million) grants program to provide bulk rebates for the installation of solar panels, solar hot water systems and heat pumps as part of plans for all new homes in the state to be 100% electric from 2024.

Energy storage specialist Eku Energy says the 200 MW/400 MWh Rangebank Battery being developed on the outskirts of Melbourne will be operational by the end of next year with early site works having now commenced on the grid-scale project.

Solar generation in Australia’s main electricity grid has surged to record highs with the latest data from the Australian Energy Market Operator revealing that rooftop solar generation increased 30% in the second quarter of 2023 while grid-scale solar output rose by 37%.

A team of engineers at Melbourne’s RMIT University have developed a rechargeable ‘proton battery’, claiming the technology has the potential, with further development, to store more energy than currently available lithium-ion batteries.

Gas major Atco has ditched its plans for a commercial-scale green hydrogen manufacturing facility proposed for Western Australia’s remote midwest, saying the distance between the production facility and end use undermined the commercial viability of the project.

Australian battery technology company Vaulta has unveiled its first dedicated residential battery with the small-scale energy storage system purportedly able to operate for 4,000 cycles with an 80% depth of discharge.

Renewable energy developer Neoen will scale up the installed capacity of the Western Downs Battery being built in Queensland to 270 MW/540 MWh as it looks to keep pace with rising demand for energy storage and realise opportunities across Australia’s evolving energy system.

Australian natural hydrogen explorer Gold Hydrogen plans to start drilling on South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula later this year after early testing at its maiden Ramsay project site detected the presence of naturally occurring hydrogen in soil samples.