Utility Scale Storage

The Australian federal government is fast-tracking the world’s biggest solar and storage project in the sun-drenched Tennant Creek region that aims to power Darwin and export solar from the outback to Singapore and eventually Indonesia via a submarine transmission link.

The New South Wales town of Parkes, famous for its involvement in the Apollo 11 Moon landing, is set to play a part in another scientific wonder, the transition to renewable energy, after the NSW Government approved the development of the 80 MW Quorn Park Solar Farm. A small step in the plan , but a giant leap for the planet.

The Australian renewables sector was not immune to a host of challenges that marked the first half of the year, but the pipeline of renewable energy projects in the country reached new heights. While new construction dipped to a four-year low and financial close remained out of reach for a great number of projects, the second half of the year is looking more positive, according to Norwegian consultancy Rystad Energy.

New economic modelling from Accenture’s AlphaBeta has found 76,000 clean jobs just waiting to be created over the next three years if a green recovery from the twin recoveries from the Black Summer Bushfires and Covid-19 were implemented. The Plan, commissioned by the Climate Council, breaks down potential jobs in the hardest hit regions and occupations.

A dispatchable hybrid solar project has been proposed by the Australian solar thermal specialist to power the community and resources sector in the Mount Isa region of Queensland.

Digital technologies are enabling integration of vast volumes of data, to provide sophisticated modelling of projects, arriving at highest yield and lowest levelised cost of energy. An Australian leader in the field, Aurecon has been recognised for the innovation of its siteLab software in bringing far-flung stakeholders and disparate sources of information into the one virtual reality.

Testing is currently underway at the  Hornsdale Power Reserve in South Australia, recently expanded to 150MW/193.5MWh. With the added capability to provide grid inertia, owner Neoen reports that it will support the grid and reduce curtailment affecting its wind farm assets in the state. pv magazine Australia spoke to Romain Desrousseaux – the company’s deputy CEO and head of international development – about the expansion.

A wide-ranging joint report published by the Democratic presidential candidate and his former rival includes the section: ‘Undoing the harms of the Trump administration and righting the wrongs.’

The Northern Territory is an energy powerhouse, pulsing with oil and gas expertise, LNG processing plants and a burgeoning solar scene. The government’s new Renewable Hydrogen Strategy seeks to leverage such skill sets and infrastructure towards a green-hydrogen industry and net-zero emissions by 2050…

The Northern Territory Government has released its Climate Change Response, a directive officially adopting a 2050 net-zero emissions target and 50% renewable energy by 2030 target. The Climate Council has welcomed the response, saying that the NT now joins the rest of Australia’s states and territories in effectively forming a “de facto national net-zero target”.