Straddling two state borders, the West Murray region in southeastern Australia has become a microcosm of technical challenges that can plague the energy transition. Faced with serious curtailment of solar farms in this electrically remote region, a remarkable inverter-based technical feat may have changed the game.

An Australian government-backed trial of peer-to-peer (P2P) solar trading has demonstrated the potential of localized two-sided energy markets and blockchain technology to improve the energy system. However, current electricity tariff structures would need to be modified to realize the full stack of values that this technology has to offer.

Under a new plan to stabilize its grid, the South Australian State Government is providing $10 million to upgrade its voltage management and giving the green light to the Australian Energy Market Operator to stop its rooftop solar from feeding in when needed. The plan also highlights the importance “smart” PV and stronger network interconnection, primarily the new SA-NSW line a.k.a. Project EnergyConnect.

The Essential Services Commission of South Australia has given the tick of approval for the Tesla big battery to vary its electricity generation license in line with its increased capacity from 100 to 150 MW.

As the solar industry moves to embrace ultra-high-efficiency modules, the Chinese PV heavyweight has unveiled TrinaPro Mega, the first integrated solar system in the world that incorporates 500W+ modules. The solution is expected to be particularly attractive for Australia’s utility-scale PV sector.

Infigen Energy has recommended an $840.6 million buyout bid from Spain’s Iberdrola to its shareholders and urged them to reject an earlier offer from Philippines-linked investment company UAC Energy.

According to new research from Wood Mackenzie, Australia is set to add 1.2 GWh of energy storage capacity in 2020, more than double the 499 MWh installed in 2019.

Inverters and batteries from Chinese manufacturer Growatt have been included in Ikea’s solar offers in Australia.

Soluna Australia’s lithium-ion residential energy storage systems have achieved accreditation with the Clean Energy Council and are now eligible for incentives under the federal and state government programs.

Monash University researchers have developed an energy exchange framework to better manage distributed energy resources, which they say will help consumers lower their power costs. The applicability of this perspective is demonstrated through the university’s landmark on-site microgrid.