South Australia

One of the few benefits of COVID-19 is the ability to virtually attend conferences that may previously have been a plane ticket too far. Tomorrow’s South Australian Renewable Energy Conference is a window of opportunity …

As some parts of Australia’s distribution networks threaten to blackout under the flow of rooftop solar exports, ARENA announces funding for a trial that will enable flexible exports in line with what the networks can bear. Smart software is the answer.

Green Gold Energy has proposed a 185 MW and a 120 MW solar farm within 50km of each other at the South Australian end of the to-be-constructed SA-NSW Interconnector.

South Australia’s new solar installation regulations came into effect on September 28. The regulations, designed to better manage a distributed energy system, are thought rushed by some in the industry, but ultimately they should facilitate more solar integration.

South Australia’s small-scale solar sensation Yates Electrical Services is teaming up with Sustainable Energy Infrastructure to develop 20 MW of small-scale solar over the next 18-months, another sign of the strength of the small-scale solar surge which flies under the radar of the network’s congestion woes.

The forecast for the ACT is two big batteries and gale-force winds as the territory’s Government awarded two considerable contracts in its latest ‘reverse auction’, including a 14-year contract with Neoen, the first for its massive Goyder Renewables Zone. 

3,000 social housing properties in South Australia are to be transformed into the world’s largest virtual power plant (VPP). Tesla has picked up a grants ARENA and the SA Government, and an investment from CEFC to execute the $60.6 million project, which is intended to deliver lower electricity costs for residents and a more stable grid.

New analysis from The Australian National University along with recently published figures from the Clean Energy Regulator demonstrate that Australia remains the world leader in wind and solar deployment per capita, particularly rooftop PV. However, federal policy is failing to invest in desperately needed infrastructural upgrades.

South Australia’s first ten-star home was completed last month, a home that consumes twenty times less energy than the average Australian household, in part thanks to its Fimer React 2 solar hybrid system.

The 50% expansion of Neoen’s Hornsdale Power Reserve, otherwise known as the Tesla Big Battery, has been successfully completed. If testing of the upgraded battery goes well, Hornsdale could begin to function with an expanded remit of synthetic inertia services, a capability which could have significant impact on regulatory changes.