News

Australian oil and gas exploration and development company Elixir Energy has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Mongolia Green Finance Corporate to support financing for the first phase of a proposed green hydrogen project planned for the South Gobi region of the East Asia nation.

Victorian network utility AusNet Services appears certain to be entirely foreign owned after shareholders overwhelmingly approved the sale of the company to a consortium led by Canadian asset management group Brookfield.

Designed by Chinese provider Mibet, the mounting structure can be used for different crop types. The system offers a tilt angle of up to 30 degrees and can host either framed or frameless solar modules.

On the company’s Q4 earnings call, the world-leading EV manufacturer again prioritised delivering cars over growing low-margin energy storage products, while solar products were barely noted. Both verticals grew though, solar by 68% and storage by 32%.

Once thought of in a niche sense, the solar-water nexus is a rapidly expanding network of applications. They include practical tools capable of solving persistent issues like water scarcity, as well as newly pressing issues like overcoming the water challenge of green hydrogen production. Blake Matich looks at such applications here in Australia and abroad.

Lavo’s hydrogen battery technology has found monetary support from both Australian and international investors in the last year, as well as public support which has continued this week with the announcement by the New South Wales government of $5 million in funding from the Regional Job Creation Fund to boost hydrogen manufacturing jobs in the Hunter Region.

Long thought of as adversaries to renewable energy, fossil fuel assets and infrastructure also present opportunities for solar, its green-hydrogen output, and smart energy storage. Natalie Filatoff reports on the opportunities and approaches the miners are taking.

Australian financial institution Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has turned to solar PV to improve its bottom line with a 200 kW rooftop system installed atop its major corporate site in Bendigo in regional Victoria.

The first 20MW/20MWh battery energy storage system in the 470MW/470MWh portfolio Fluence is deploying for Filipino conglomerate San Miguel Corp has started serving the island nation’s electricity network.

Renewables have continued their rise in Australia’s energy market with a new report published by the Australian Energy Market Operator revealing grid-scale solar, wind, hydro and rooftop solar PV provided almost one-third of the National Electricity Market’s power needs during the December quarter.