Energy Storage

The Australian government’s green bank continues to invest in energy efficient homes for low income families with a new funding granted for solar and battery-powered dwellings in regional New South Wales.

The latest figures from the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) show that solar continues to eat into the share once firmly held by coal on the back of a dramatic increase in installations over the past 12 months. The trend was backed by energy storage facilities which continued to gain foothold as providers of frequency control and ancillary services, lowering overall costs in the first quarter of 2019.

Analyst Globaldata says falling system prices, and the need for more resilient grids and favorable policies, continue to fire the energy storage industry around the globe and the Asia-Pacific region is likely to remain the biggest market.

In a powerful demonstration of Australia’s energy transition, the Victorian State Coal Mine, a tourist attraction in the coastal town of Wonthaggi, is now powered by a solar and battery storage system.

Federal Labor has pledged to roll out solar PV and batteries at schools across Australia and create virtual power plants supporting up to 365 MW of capacity.

As part of its Future Mines and Jobs Plan, Labor has pledged to revive the Exploring for the Future funding and invest $75 million in developing the future mining of resources such as lithium. If elected in the upcoming federal election, the party will also make the south-west of Western Australia a renewable energy zone, meaning the region will be able to access funding through the party’s planned $5 billion Energy Security and Modernisation Fund.

The first virtual power plant to be announced since the last year’s launch of the Home Battery Scheme in South Australia is picking up the pace with the addition of Eguana Technologies’ Evolve to the list of eligible energy storage systems.

The EV, energy storage and solar company deployed only 47 MW of solar during Q1, as Tesla moves away from traditional sales methods towards web-based sales for its products.

Coming hot on the heels of major reports and a heated public debate about electric vehicles, a poll commissioned by the Climate Council confirms Australians believe electric cars are the future. Another poll, by The Australia Institute, has 50% of Australian voters supporting all car sales being electric by 2025.

The world had more than half a terawatt of PV generation capacity at the end of last year as emerging solar markets picked up the slack caused by Beijing’s subsidy about-turn to the tune of a 20% rise in installations outside China.