Energy Storage

The Australian Energy Market Operator’s wide-ranging and detailed Integrated System Plan prompted a flurry of media reactions that boil down to two conflicting interpretations of its purpose. Some interpreted the findings as a call to hold on tight to coal-fired power, while others a remarkable confirmation that renewables are the optimal electricity source of the future, and high penetrations are both practicable and cost effective.

The Australian arm of German project developer juwi is looking to acquire utility-scale solar PV projects in New South Wales and Victoria.

Perth-based blockchain startup Power Ledger has announced its first carbon credit project as part of its partnership with Chicago-based startup Clean Energy Blockchain Network and in collaboration with California’s municipal utility Silicon Valley Power. The company’s platform will manage credits generated by the use of solar energy in electric vehicle charging.

Solar PV capacity is set to grow 17-fold, and wind six-fold, by 2050, to account for nearly half of global electricity generation, predicts BNEF, while investments will reach US$11.5 trillion. Cost reductions will drive this charge, particularly in the battery market, which will benefit from the EV manufacturing ramp up. Despite this, the electricity sector is still failing to bring CO₂ emissions down to the required levels, with its continued dependence on gas.

The Swiss investment manager and the Australian renewable energy developer stand ready to deliver a total of over 1.3 GW of solar, wind and battery projects across New South Wales within the next four years.

A new report by Rocky Mountain Institute finds that gas plants proposed across the United States over the next 15 years could be replaced by clean energy portfolios at a net savings, and that these projects are at risk of becoming stranded assets.

Scientists from the University of Wollongong have developed prototype battery cells based on sodium-ion technology, which the university says can achieve excellent cycling stability and easily be scaled up to mass production.

Shell’s new report shows a world where solar meets the largest portion of primary energy demand as soon as 2050.

‘Unprecedented challenge’ for fossil fuels as low LCOE for solar and wind power, allied to tumbling storage costs, sees renewables claim larger share of bulk and dispatchable generation while adding vital flexibility to global energy mix.

ARENA to fund pilot projects and studies worth a total of $12.5 to optimize the integration of distributed energy resources (DER) into the electricity network.