New South Wales

Compressed air energy storage (CAES) sits at a crossroads. It is considered a mature form of deep storage due to its components being firmly “de-risked” but few projects are operating in the Western world. A project in the remote New South Wales town of Broken Hill promises to lead the way.

The complex energy needs of a wildlife attraction in Sydney’s east that houses more than 4,000 animals will in part be met by renewable energy following the installation of a 271 kW rooftop solar system spread across eight buildings at the site.

Solar panel manufacturing in Australia has reached a new zenith with a commitment by two industry leaders to explore the possibilities of establishing a commercial-scale advanced solar panel manufacturing facility in the heart of New South Wales coal country.

Network operator Transgrid has shuffled the proposed route for the Victoria-New South Wales Interconnector West transmission project, acknowledging that community concerns, including potential impacts on agriculture and visual amenity have had a significant influence.

Electricity gen-tailer Origin Energy is currently in talks with the New South Wales government to extend the life of Australia’s biggest coal power clunker, the hyper-expensive, high-emissions, end-of-life 2.88 GW Eraring plant, beyond its slated closure date of August 2025. The reason cited for extension is to maintain reliable and secure energy supply in our state.

British developer Lightsource bp’s plans to build the biggest solar farm and battery energy storage system on any of Australia’s main electricity grids has a green light to proceed after securing environmental approval from the Australian government.

A coalition of community groups have branded the estimated $4.9 billion HumeLink transmission project defective and the New South Wales government reckless to ignore safety and environmental concerns.

The new efficiency record for fully roll-to-roll printed perovskite solar cells set by an international team of scientists from Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO unlocks new manufacturing potential. These lightweight and flexible solar cells manufactured on very long, continuous rolls of plastic can dramatically increase the rate of production and scope for deployment.

The New South Wales workplace health and safety regulator has commenced a compliance blitz focusing on the safe installation of rooftop solar systems with inspectors to ensure business owners are checking on the safety of subcontractors.

New South Wales has committed to reform the planning approvals process for renewable energy developments amid criticism that the current process isn’t fit for purpose and is slowing the state’s transition from coal-dominated generation to a renewables-dominated grid.