Energy Storage

Experts from the Australian National University have published a technical paper in which they argue a doubling of the rate of deployment of solar and wind would cut Australia’s carbon emissions 80% by 2040.

Renewable electricity will be linked to 90% of the actions needed to remove carbon emissions in 2050, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency, and the biggest volume of generation capacity will be provided by solar.

Earlier this month, London-based Eco Energy World announced a $500 million project to combine its ready to build 300 MW solar plant north of Gladstone, Queensland, with a 200 MW hydrogen plant and 100 MW of battery energy storage. pv magazine Australia sat down with EEW CEO Svante Kumlin to discuss the project, the green hydrogen future, and Australia’s future in it.

Juwi Renewable Energy, the Brisbane-based subsidiary of German company juwi, will construct a solar and diesel hybrid solution for Iluka’s South Australian Jacinth-Ambrosia mine, where zircon – used in ceramics – is the primary output.

A West Australian vanadium explorer, Technology Metals, has signed an agreement with a prominent Japanese company to explore the possibility of manufacturing vanadium electrolyte in Australia – a key component of the increasingly popular vanadium redox flow batteries.

Redflow has signed its biggest global battery deal yet after agreeing to supply Californian biowaste tech firm Anaergia with a 2 MWh energy storage system. Redflow is hoping the US$1.2 million agreement for 192 of its zinc-bromine flow batteries will serve as a foundation for US market expansion.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency is helping to fund a trial by Distributed Energy Resources firm UPowr which will monitor solar customers interested in incorporating a home battery system. The aim of the project is to better incorporate customer experience insights into the design of DER products.

Scientists in China and the United States investigated the inner workings of aluminium-ion batteries. With new insights into mechanisms at work within the battery during cycling, the group was able to demonstrate a battery capable of ultrafast charging, with the highest capacity so far reported for an aluminium battery.

Battery storage manufacturer RedEarth has partnered with a major Australian housing developer to offer new-home buyers solar and solar/battery systems tailored to their needs from the get go – and with the opportunity to sell excess energy at optimised prices where the grid needs it most.

Foresight Solar Fund’s 2020 annual report puts the travails endured and fixes deployed for four now powerful Australian assets in context.