Grids & Integration

Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, and the Australian Energy Market Operator have found even when factoring in additional ‘integration’ costs such as storage and new transmission infrastructure, solar and wind continue to be the cheapest sources of new-build electricity generation in Australia.

South Australian transmission company ElectraNet on Monday announced it will invest $457.4 million to deliver the its section of the Project EnergyConnect, the high-voltage electricity transmission interconnector between South Australia and New South Wales.

A proposal which would allow network operators to charge rooftop solar PV owners to export their surplus energy to the grid has been opposed by key stakeholder groups in a joint submission to the Australian Energy Market Commission.

Australia’s largest renewable energy zone is one step closer to fruition with the New South Wales Government calling for registrations of interest from developers of solar PV, wind and energy storage projects.

The Housing SA Tesla VPP is being expanded to include a trial of 20 homes unsuitable for solar installation. The SA Government is offering free Tesla batteries to such homes to show how participation in the VPP with a battery alone can still deliver significant savings.

TransGrid and ElectraNet have shovels at the ready to begin work on the long-planned and hard-won Project EnergyConnect, which will link three Australian states with much needed capacity for transmission of renewable energy.

A microgrid research project taking place in four farming communities located in New South Wales and Queensland. Over 50 smart meters are collecting real-time energy data to determine models and microgrid solutions to help farmers struggling with high electricity bills, and to help the struggling network of energy infrastructure.

Queensland’s worst power outage in decades has triggered calls for the introduction of more utility scale batteries capable of providing security for the state’s electricity network.

A new program has launched on the New South Wales south coast enabling solar generated on residential rooftops to be consumed locally by hot water systems through smart meters alone, helping manage the growing problem of variable electricity in the grid without requiring new infrastructure.

Australia’s energy transition from traditional generation to renewable resources is quickening and global energy technology provider Fluence has highlighted that asset operators are turning to automated bidding solutions as they seek to navigate an increasingly complex market.