Brisbane-based redox-flow supplier Redflow has begun shipping batteries from its new Thai manufacturing facility to Fiji, under a $1.6 million telecommunications supply deal. The batteries will be deployed by New Zealand’s Hitech Solutions to power Fiji’s new digital television network over the next six months.

DNV GL, Deakin University, the CSIRO, and the Smart Energy Council have come together to collaborate on a two-year project to develop a new performance standard for distributed energy storage systems. The work behind the proposed Australian Battery Performance Standard is being funded $1.9 million from ARENA and the Victoria state government.

German inverter giant SMA has partnered with Melbourne’s Wilson Transformer Company (WTC) to develop a central inverter solution specifically for Australian utility scale projects. The new Power Skid will be assembled in Australia, with WTC providing the medium and low voltage switchgear – among other componentry.

Octopus, the largest investor in utility scale solar in the UK has established an office in Melbourne, saying the “fundamental shift from fossil fuels to renewables” in the “rapidly evolving [Australian] market is already underway.

Canberra-based Reposit Power has introduced smart home automation to its solar, storage, monitoring and trading technology platform. The If This, Then That (IFTTT) web service that can switch on and off big electricity consumption devices like pool pumps and air conditioners, to maximise the utility of rooftop PV power.

A 7.3 MW solar array and 2 MW/1 MWh battery will be added to the Granny Smith gold mine in Western Australia’s Eastern Goldfields region. The system will be provided by Aggreko and Younicos, under a ‘microgrid-as-a-service’ business model.

A hugely-ambitious plan to develop a 200 MW PV array and 120 MWh battery system in South Australia has received development approval. The project developer, which is hosted by the University of Adelaide’s ThincLab accelerator, reports that the $450 million project is privately financed with a 60/40 merchant/PPA structure – a significant milestone for the market segment.

Enphase Energy has announced the release of the seventh generation of its microinverters to Australia and New Zealand. The IQ 7 and IQ 7+ replaces the S-Series. It is 47% lighter, offering easier handling on the roof.

Describing it as the “D-Day for renewables”, the Smart Energy Council is raising funds to campaign against the National Energy Guarantee – as currently proposed by the government. The solar and storage peak body has called for a 45%-by-2030 emissions reductions target as opposed to the current 26%.

Hybridization of power supply, through the inclusion of renewables, offers Australian mining companies the opportunity to score a significant “triple win” in the form of reduced cash operating costs, reduced fuel prices and reduced exposure to carbon risk.