Utility Scale PV

The first of three large-scale green hydrogen plants in the pipeline of the Green Hydrogen Australia Group has been given the green light. The Bundaberg Hydrogen Hub, featuring an 80 MW hydrogen electrolyser, will produce clean hydrogen for Australian hydrogen vehicle developer H2X.

International EPC Sterling Wilson has picked up two new utility scale solar projects in Australia, with a combined capacity of 300 MW. The deals see the Indian-based company secure the position of being the dominant solar EPC in the Australian PV market.

Around 4.2 MWh of energy storage capacity will be connected to a solar and diesel micro-grid on Rarotonga, the largest of the islands in the South Pacific nation. Three 40-foot containers with a total power output of 4.8 MVA will be used as a power reserve and for grid support by utility Te Aponga Uira.

The world’s sixth-largest solar player in 2019 has risen to the top spot by securing a contract from Solar Energy Corp. of India to develop 8 GW of PV capacity.

Solar curtailment might become a valuable aspect of future PV deployment, particularly if grid operators start focusing on ‘curtailment management’ instead of ‘curtailment prevention.’ Management would include measures such as flexible generation, storage, load flexibility, and regional coordination.

After being ignored by the Federal Government, Queensland has announced a $500 million Renewable Energy Fund for state-owned energy corporations to invest in commercial renewable project and infrastructure, a particular complement to QLD’s three pending Renewable Energy Zones.

The Clean Energy Regulator puts an optimistic spin on solar development in its Quarterly Carbon Market Report for the second quarter of this year. Angus Taylor opportunistically leaps on the news. But with 28.4 GWac of renewable projects seeking connection, investors take matters into their own hands.

New analysis from The Australian National University along with recently published figures from the Clean Energy Regulator demonstrate that Australia remains the world leader in wind and solar deployment per capita, particularly rooftop PV. However, federal policy is failing to invest in desperately needed infrastructural upgrades.

The Federal Government’s Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility is backing Melbourne-based investment firm Merricks Capital to the tune of $37 million for the construction of a 10 MW solar farm and a 12 MW gas power plant south of Darwin. The twin projects are set to be the first privately owned and operated energy projects in the Territory.

Endesa, the Spanish unit of Italian power group Enel, is using a new technology in the construction of three solar parks in southern Spain.