Australia

In this Opinion and Analysis piece, Lumi Adisa, Director of Energy Market Analytics at NEOM and ex-Investment Director of Energy Markets at Octopus Investments Australia, presents a deep dive into the unprecedented impact of rooftop solar in the NEM. As rooftop solar continues to drive changes in the intraday demand and price trends, it is evident that customers will remain a significant part of the energy transition for years to come.

Danish investment group Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners has tapped Canadian PV and battery manufacturing heavyweight Canadian Solar to provide energy storage solutions for the first of several large-scale battery projects it has planned for Australia.

Australian Energy Minister Chris Bowen has announced a major expansion of the Commonwealth-funded Capacity Investment Scheme that will now target 32 GW of renewable generation and storage capacity to support the nation’s clean energy transition.

More than 1 GW of firmed storage capacity is set to be delivered by six winning projects from a recent tender in the Australian state of New South Wales. Akaysha Energy’s 415 MW/1,660 MWh battery in Wellington and AGL’s 500 MW/1,000 MWh Liddell battery are the round’s two biggest projects.

BP will look at deploying a 100 MW electrolyser to produce renewable hydrogen for Australia and export markets. It aims to transform its former Kwinana oil refinery site in Western Australia into a green fuels hub.

Australia’s Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners has signed a supply deal with Chinese battery manufacturer CATL that is expected to support the deployment of more than 10 GWh of energy storage systems over the next five years.

Genex Power, the owner of a 50 MW/100 MWh battery system that caught fire in the Australian state of Queensland on Sept. 26, says the blaze was triggered by issues on the grid side of the Tesla Megapack battery unit.

Belgium’s Innoptus Solar Team was the first car to cross the finish line this week in the 3,000 km Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. The team beat its 2019 winning time by 48 minutes.

A group of scientists across the world have created a list of recommendations that can help create solar neighborhoods. In a recently published study they highlight the importance of legislative frameworks and advanced computing.

The Australian government has doubled the amount of federal financing available for critical minerals projects to AUD 4 billion ($2.56 billion) as it looks to shore up supply chains with the United States, deliver on emissions reduction targets, and build clean energy industries.