Australia is making record-breaking investments in battery energy storage systems, with $2.4 billion committed in the first three months of 2025 alone. These systems are proving to be vital for meeting renewable energy targets and strengthening energy reliability across many critical industries. That includes mining operators, who are increasingly ramping up BESS deployments to replace diesel generators, cutting costs and emissions.

As the world looks for ways to tackle climate change, Australia has invested heavily in green hydrogen, which is shaping as the best option to strip carbon emissions from some industrial processes, such as iron-making and ammonia production. But making the dream a reality in Australia is proving difficult.

Australia’s data centre sector is booming, driven by AI and digital growth – but so too are the energy and regulatory challenges.

Green hydrogen is touted by some as the future – a way for Australia to slowly replace its reliance on fossil fuel exports. The energy-dense gas has the potential to reduce emissions in sectors challenging to decarbonise, such as steelmaking and fertiliser manufacturing.

IEA PVPS Task 16 recently introduced SolarStations.org, a global catalogue of solar irradiance monitoring stations designed for researchers, developers, and policymakers. This openly available resource catalogues more than 800 multi-component stations – of which more than 400 are currently active – offering a comprehensive view of high-quality ground-based solar data.

Researchers in Singapore have milled solar panel glass waste for use in cathodes in solid-state lithium metal batteries. When used as a functional filler in solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) material, the resulting battery performance was maintained over 80 charge cycles with an 8.3 % improvement over the reference device.

Tenaga Nasional Berhad says the newly-announced hybrid hydro floating solar hub and green hydrogen hub will position Malaysia as a regional leader in the green hydrogen value chain.

New large-scale solar farms in Australia’s southeast could be forced to curtail up to two thirds of their power generation by 2027 due to delays in energy transmission infrastructure projects, according to new analysis from the Australian Energy Market Operator.

Australian renewables developer Edify Energy has unveiled plans for a major 2.4 GWh solar and integrated battery energy storage facility in northwest Victoria, adding to its growing portfolio of power generation and storage projects.

Li-S Energy has produced Australia’s first lithium metal foils at its cell production facility in Victoria, a milestone the company says supports its broader mission to commercialise high-performance lithium-sulfur and lithium metal batteries.

The Victorian government has launched its third and final round of grant funding through the 100 Neighbourhood Batteries Program, offering $400,000 per battery through multiple streams of eligibility to a pool of nine council regions.

Community Power Agency has released a guide for regional communities hosting multiple renewable energy projects to promote benefit sharing strategies that ensure a stake over the next 25 years in an estimated $1.9 billion opportunity.

Testing conducted by the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin in Germany has shown that perovskite solar cells operating at high latitudes in Europe may suffer from higher performance losses in winter compared to conventional PV devices. The scientists warned, however, that at lower latitudes this seasonality may be less pronounced.

AGL Energy has acquired the 150 MW solar, 90 MW thermal, and 720 MWh of storage Yadnarie Project from Dutch developer Photon Energy, and follows the project’s development approval received in June.

An expanded 199 kW rooftop solar system and energy management system featuring 14 power meters is helping a Victorian college slash its annual energy costs with projections tipping savings of more than $21,000 per annum.

A United States-based collaboration between the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and CubicPV has yielded a perovskite minimodule with certified efficiency of 24.0%. The two noted that it is the first time a U.S. effort has set a record in the perovskite mini module category.

Energy Safe Victoria has found there is no case to prosecute AusNet Transmission for the collapse of six transmission towers in Anakie, north of Geelong, Victoria during an extreme storm event in February 2024.

Seven regional Victoria battery storage projects, all at the commissioning phase, will be the first to connect to Victorian distributor Powercor’s high voltage distributed energy resource management system, adding stability to the grid.

While attempting to address suparradiance in Dicke quantum batteries to leverage their fast charging qualities, researchers at RMIT University and the CSIRO have developed a method to extend the lifetime of quantum batteries by 1,000 times.

In a new scientific paper published in nature, the Chinese manufacturer presented a new tandem perovskite-silicon solar cell based on a bottom cell with a heterojunction design. It also used a new type of self-assembled monolayer that reportedly reduces non-radiative recombination and increases cell efficiency.

Scientists in India have proposed to design new tandem solar cells using transition metal dichalcogenide as an absorber material for the bottom PV device. Their simulations showed these tandem cells may reach an efficiency of more than 35%.

Deye has developed a new power conversion system optimised for solar integration, with modules ranging from 100 kW to 125 kW. The Chinese manufacturer says the PCS supports flexible system design and targets commercial and industrial applications.

SunCable has welcomed the federal government’s decision to renew major project status for its Australia-Asia PowerLink project that would send up to 6 GW of renewable power from the Northern Territory to industries and urban centres in Darwin and Singapore.

United States-headquartered manufacturer GameChange Solar says its Genius Tracker TF supports slopes of up to 1.7 degrees between posts, thereby reducing land grading costs.

In a novel combination of micro-concentrators and picosecond laser processing, Italian researchers are tackling two metal halide perovskite solar PV challenges to reduce the use of lead and extend stability of the power conversion efficiency.

In grids increasingly dominated by renewables, grid-forming technology is emerging as critical tool for maintaining stability and ensuring reliable power system operation. In this interview with ESS News, Rui Sun, Sungrow’s Deputy General Manager-Grid Technology Center, explains how grid-forming works, why it matters, and where the technology is already proving its value. He elaborates on technical challenges, regulatory gaps, and why grid-forming could soon become the new industry standard.

Australian company Solspan has unveiled a vertical solar wall system that it says will enable the dual purposing of agricultural land, helping to address land use concerns associated with the rollout of renewable energy projects.

Ampyr Australia, the local arm of Singapore-based developer Ampyr Energy, has achieved financial close for its 300 MW / 600 MWh Wellington stage one battery energy storage system project being developed in central west New South Wales.

Thai energy company Banpu has snapped up a 50% stake in the 350 MW / 1,400 MWh Wooreen battery energy storage system being built in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley as the Bangkok-based coal producer ramps up investments in renewable energy.

Global Power Generation Australia is preparing to add another renewable energy project to its construction pipeline with the Victorian government fast-tracking approval for a 400 MWh battery to be built in the state’s southwest.