Western Australia

With reins tightly held by China, a handful of players are trying to prise the production of a core ingredient of lithium-ion batteries out of Goliath’s hand before the battery boom begins in earnest with the electrification of the transport sector. The head of one of those companies, WA start-up International Graphite, spoke to pv magazine Australia about the hunger of both investors and customers, and the surprisingly collaborative race to feed global demand.

Western Australia has officially extended the reach of its new darling: stand-alone power systems, or SAPS. In a state first, Government-owned network services provider Western Power has deployed units at two Perth Hills properties following bushfires earlier this month.

Hybrid energy systems are blooming in Australia’s remote locations, as renewables are increasingly partnered with gas or diesel to advance the greening of desert industries and communities that operate far from the grid.

With a state election looming and a Liberal Opposition eager to embrace renewables, Western Australia’s McGowan government has announced a $259 million renewables-focussed package in a bid to retain power and primacy in the progressive space.

Little more than a seed of an idea and the registration of Zero Carbon Hydrogen as a trademark has proven enough to send West Australian company Province Resources status, and share prices, through the roof.

The West Australian Wholesale Energy Market (WEM) is in for a major shake-up with the State Government’s Energy Transformation Taskforce unveiling plans for a redesign which it said will fully integrate renewable energy – in all its guises – into the power system.

Western Australian-based gold and nickel exploration company Province Resources has announced its intention to enter the renewable energy sector, floating plans to develop a 1 GW wind and solar PV green hydrogen production facility in the state’s north west.

BHP has started the year by signing a PPA that will halve emissions at its Nickel West Kwinana refinery and double its green cred as a supplier to environmentally conscious lithium-ion battery manufacturers.

Western Australian Opposition Leader Zak Kirkup has unveiled an ambitious new energy policy in the lead up to the state election, announcing a $400 million jobs and renewable energy plan which would see coal phased out along with big investments in solar, wind and hydrogen.

The highly successful Western Australian community battery rollout continues with the expansion of the PowerBank trial, run by the state’s biggest generator and retailer Synergy in conjunction with state-owned network operator Western Power.