Markets

The Victorian government has decided to break away from national electricity rules and introduce legislation that will fast-track priority projects like grid-scale batteries and transmission upgrades and make room for more large-scale solar and wind on the grid. The announced reforms have prompted a flurry of reactions.

Despite a massive drop in renewable energy investment seen last year, 2020 promises to bring both good and bad news for the Australian solar sector. While network conditions will continue to deteriorate, the low-carbon policy will become more supportive but also more chaotic.

Melbourne startup Relectrify is on the verge of a U.S. breakthrough with its highly efficient and cost-effective battery storage technology.

As the outbreak takes its toll on solar panel and battery manufacturing in China, Australia is bracing for disruptions in the supply chains.

As the survival of the fittest continues in Australia’s notoriously competitive EPC market, the Sydney-based diversified infrastructure company has signaled that it will no longer bid fixed prices to build solar.

WoodMac analysts say the amount of new battery manufacturing capacity added in the nation this year could fall by as much as 10% because of the outbreak. With Tesla’s Shanghai gigafactory affected by the extended new-year-holiday shutdown, the analyst warned of potential supply shortages for Australia and the U.S. and U.K.

Against the backdrop of extreme heat, generator, and transmission line outages and intense bushfires, revenues for grid-scale batteries on the National Electricity Market (NEM) have been trending upwards.

Grid-scale wind and solar output reached new highs in Q4 last year pushing power prices to a three-year low despite a number of coal-fired generator outages. As Australia’s big PV fleet continues to expand, the National Electricity Market saw the highest output of big PV on record, but also record curtailment.

Synergy and Western Power’s PowerBank trial has reached another milestone with the integration of a utility-scale community battery into Perth’s major metropolitan network.

The California-based microinverter maker has partnered with installer Solaray and wholesaler AC Solar Warehouse in Australia to intensify the calls against rooftop DC isolators, stressing they should be replaced with safer equipment now available in the market.