Highlights

A survey run by the Clean Energy Council among senior executives, leading with a combined net worth of more than $17 billion, shows that clean energy investment confidence is strong. The majority of companies are looking to put on extra staff in the next year. However, challenges in achieving project grid connection and policy uncertainty are causing great stress in the long run.

The New South Wales Department of Planning and Environment has given the green light to a massive solar farm coupled with a utility-scale energy storage facility. The project proposed by Edify Energy is valued at $407 million.

The New South Wales government has launched its ambitious pumped hydro roadmap designed to back the rising level of wind and solar in the energy mix. Meanwhile, the board of government-owned energy provider Snowy Hydro has given the green light to its landmark $4 billion pumped hydro expansion project, Snowy 2.0.

The federal government has launched a strategy seeking investment to unlock Australia’s potential in lithium-ion battery manufacturing. Noting that the nation’s mineral reserves cover 90% of the elements required in li-ion battery chemistry, the new Austrade report underlines that Australia is well-positioned to become a world leader in this fast growing market.

The Clean Energy Council has tallied the numbers underlying Australia’s large scale renewables boom. And big PV is shattering all records, with almost $11.5 billion in projects currently being constructed.

High levels of rooftop PV penetration, an informed public, small seasonal irradiance variation, and market structures that favour maximising solar self consumption: Australia is ideally situated to see the adoption of the smart home. So says SolarEdge founder Lior Handelsman who spells out how the company is expanding its Aussie operations and offering a growing range of solutions to put rooftop PV to its best use.

Around 40 residential properties across the port city of Fremantle, Western Australia, will be able to trade solar power using a blockchain-enabled platform. The trial is even open for residents who do not have solar PV on their rooftops.

In an attempt to encourage more large scale renewable development while maintaining grid stability, Western Power has introduced its Generator Interim Access (GIA) mechanism for 900 MW of wind and large scale solar projects. The GIA will open the door for some PV power plant projects to go ahead in the state, if they agree to curtail production when instructed to do so by the grid operator.

A new report analyzing the world’s largest lithium-ion battery’s performance in the first year of operation shows the Hornsdale Power Reserve has delivered on high expectations of its performance and market impact. It has helped stabilize the grid, avoid outages and reduce system costs, as well as triggered a surge in uptake of similar fast response systems across Australia.

The 2018 NSW Smart Energy Summit was crowded with attendees eager to hear former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, unfettered by party politics, address the state’s solar and renewables sector.