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.

ABB, ElectraNet and ARENA are coming together to deliver a microgrid and large scale battery storage solution to South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula. The commercial-deployment phase of the Energy Storage for Commercial Renewable Integration (ESCRI) project will strengthen the Electranet transmission system in the area, and will deliver increased resilience in the event of interstate connector failure.

Pioneering UNSW solar researcher Martin Green has received wide recognition for his achievement as being selected as one of the winners of 2018 Global Energy Prize. The prize means Green will split $820,000 in prize money with the co-winner, to go towards his research and teaching, and resulted in a congratulatory call from Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

The University of Queensland (UQ) will offset 100% of its electricity needs with renewables by 2020. The milestone will be achieved through existing rootop PV arrays, and a freshly approved 64 MW solar farm near Warwick, in the state’s Southern Downs region.