Grids & Integration

The grant recipients for the fourth phase of the Next Generation Energy Storage program have been announced. Launched in 2016, the $25 million program is supporting the roll out of up to 36 MW of smart battery storage.

Energy companies are pushing back against a proposal to allow large energy consumers to enter the wholesale electricity market, as industry bodies point to the many benefits of the wholesale demand response program.

Western Australia’s government has announced two units at Synergy’s Muja Power Station will be retired from October 2022. The state government said the coal-fired units were only being used about 35% of the time thanks largely to rooftop solar reducing demand on the grid.

Australian renewables developer Windlab has connected and energized its landmark energy park in north Queensland, comprising 43 MW of wind, 18 MW of solar and a 4 MWh battery.

Wattwatchers provides consumers with real-time electricity data that allows them to tailor their electricity use to make best use of their rooftop solar power. Consumer rights to energy data is crucial to a successful future grid with high penetration of DER, says Wattwatchers’ MD Gavin Dietz.

The Australian utility-scale solar developer has reached the final development milestone on a solar and battery project near West Wyalong in the Riverina region.

With around 16 battery-based virtual-power-plant projects either in progress or planned across six states, Australia is demonstrating the potential of distributed energy resources to the world. An Australian Clean Energy Summit panel last week caught up on progress and potholes on the road to energy’s new two-way street.

Matthew Kean, NSW Government Minister for Energy and Environment opened the Clean Energy Summit 2019 this week promising to unleash private investment on the state’s transmission infrastructure, but will the mechanism, the momentum and the maths add up to the coal-retirement timeline?

Simec Zen Energy’s landmark 1 GW dispatchable renewable energy initiative has moved forward with the development approval for the 100MW/100MWh Playford Utility Battery project located near Port Augusta. The facility will provide the necessary frequency control and grid stability requirements for the 280 MW Cultana Solar Farm

With more than 50 GW of new wind and solar projects in the development pipeline, the Australian Energy Market Commission is looking to give developers more detailed and up-to-date information about new generation projects. The new draft rule may help businesses make better investment decisions on where to locate new generators and assess project viability.