Solar & Storage Spring 2017

Solar & Storage SPRING 2017

• Market momentum – 6 GW and rising • Renewables: states set a shining example

THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE AUSTRALIAN SOLAR COUNCIL & THE ENERGY STORAGE COUNCIL

• Queensland’s grand solar plan • Storage on steroids • Smart Energy Training Centre

THE COMPACT & POWERFUL ENERGY STORAGE FOR YOUR HOME

Contents

Australian Solar Council Foreword by CEO and CEFC’s Ian Learmonth

4

Smart Energy Training Centre

42

Save the date! Smart Energy Show in Sydney, April 2018

43

Master Installers

59

Positive Quality

62

Training in the Pacific

63

Corporate Members

64

SPRING 2017 ISSUE 3

Market Dynamics News and views

6

Power & principle

9

CEFC: renewables by the numbers

16

PV: 6 GW and rising

18

Poll findings: renewables win by a mile

19

Infographic: electric vehicles on the radar

22

State Developments Powering Queensland

12

States of advancement

14

12

Front cover: SolarReserve is bringing its expertise in CSP from Nevada to South Australia

42

Around the industry Friends of White Cliffs

41

360Energy’s solar journey

44

Ceramet’s solar trackers

46

Instyle Solar

48

T4E lands in Australia

50

Monash solar thermal

51

All Energy – what’s on show

52

Journey to Eden

54

ShineHub shines bright

58

Storage on steroids

24

Storage news and advances

26

Hydro electric power with storage

30

Selectronic Island

34

Steam accumulator: an alternative

38

Electric vehicles set to accelerate

40

34 54 63 SOLAR & STORAGE

SOLAR & STORAGE is published by the AUSTRALIAN SOLAR COUNCIL. ABN 32 006 824 148 www.solar.org.au Subscription and membership enquiries contact Brett Thompson, Phone: 0402 181 250, brett@solar.org.au

AUSTRALIAN SOLAR COUNCIL CEO John Grimes PO Box 231, Mawson ACT 2607 admin@solar.org.au Phone: 1300 768 204 Solar & Storage ISSN 2206-1673

EDITOR: Nicola Card editor@solar.org.au nicola@solar.org.au CONTRIBUTORS: GSES, Amanda Lenihan, David Oakland, Penny Parle, ShineHub

Solar & Storage and Storage Developments advertising enquiries contact: Brett Thompson, Sales Manager | Phone: 0402 181 250 | brett@solar.org.au

DESIGN AND PRODUCTION: Mitzi Mann

Solar & Storage (Solar Progress) was first published in 1980. The magazine aims to provide readers with an in-depth review of technologies, policies and progress towards a society which sources energy from the sun rather than fossil fuels.

Except where specifically stated, the opinions and material published in this magazine are not necessarily those of the Australian Solar Council. Although every effort is made to check the authenticity and accuracy of articles, neither the Solar Council nor the editors are responsible for any inaccuracy.

Solar & Storage is published quarterly. www.solar.org.au

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Innovation for a Better Life

Welcome

John Grimes Chief Executive, Australian Solar Council and Energy Storage Council A SILENT BUT ENORMOUS RENEWABLE ENERGY investment boom is underway.

This boom is much quieter, but also much bigger than the rooftop solar boom of 2012 and this year, with rooftop solar now installed across 1.7 million Australian solar homes, it has passed the 6,000 MW mark.

This time, it’s the utility scale solar boom.

Queensland alone has 31 projects that are at or near financial close.

Combined they will deliver more than 6,500 MW of new solar projects. They will employ more than 2,700 people, and will be built over the next two years.

Outside Queensland the picture is equally bright. Utility scale solar is springing up in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia and elsewhere. Solar PV on its own; solar PV in conjunction with wind power; with and without energy storage; utility scale is booming.

And it’s not just solar PV. The South Australian government’s announcement of a concentrating solar thermal (CSP) project is particularly exciting. By the time this next phase is over, Australia is on track to have deployed more than 16,000 MW of solar capacity. Now that really is something to smile about.

But despite all this the federal government is pushing forward with plans to subsidise old coal fired power stations. It does not want to send any messages that lead to more renewables. Post 2020 it does not have a policy to guide and support renewable energy.

The Liberal and National Party ‘black hole’ approach for new renewables after 2020 is not tenable. It is not prudent, and it is unfair to Australian consumers who will face more insecurity of supply and higher energy prices.

It is critical for Australia to establish ongoing policy settings to ramp up new renewable generation in a sustainable way over the long term.

To phase in renewables as old coal power retires from the system after 50 and 60 years hard service.

It is time for everyone on the conservative side of politics to mobilise and fight for good renewable policy on the right. Conservatives who back jobs, investment, competition, economic efficiency and growing businesses deserve a renewable future.

In short the moderates must beat the far-right Luddites and their ‘coal is good for humanity’ ideology.

As it stands, they are not even close to prevailing, but for everyone’s sake they must win, and soon.

Guest Foreword AUSTRALIA IS TRANSFORMING to a clean energy economy.

Globally, solar energy, which has experienced rapidly falling installation costs, is expected to take a leading role in replacing traditional fossil fuels.

Locally, our innovative technology developers are designing and commercialising products and systems that look set to revolutionise Australia’s relationship with electricity.

We are on a sharp trajectory towards being a nation that takes increasing advantage of our rich renewable energy resources, is more efficient with the use of that energy, and is smarter about the waste we create.

At the Clean Energy Finance Corporation we’ve been tasked with driving investment that reduces Australia’s carbon emissions. Our relationships with other financiers and project developers have helped us build a diverse

Ian Learmonth is chief executive of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation

4 SPRING 2017

portfolio that demonstrates what are often ground-breaking milestones in our nation’s clean energy transformation.

In the financial year just past, the CEFC committed almost $2.1 billion across 35 transactions, signalling a strong growth in business and a healthy investor appetite for clean energy assets. We expect this investment scenario to continue as the Australian economy moves to net zero emissions by the second half of the century.

We recognise, as discussed in the Finkel report, that Australia needs a resilient, balanced and secure electricity system, and we see a long-term role for our investment capabilities to help Australia continue its journey towards decarbonisation.

So far, we have been significant investors in Australian large-scale solar and wind projects while supporting bioenergy technologies and the economy-wide uptake of energy efficient equipment.

Ahead, while we expect to further invest in these sectors, we are turning a spotlight on industry sectors with the strongest potential for decarbonisation.

So, as well as electricity generation, we are focusing on investment in transport, property, infrastructure and agriculture.

By catalysing projects in these sectors, we will be helping industry leaders showcase to the broader community that these better ways of working with energy can have a significant impact on emissions, while supporting Australia’s future competitiveness in a rapidly changing global environment.

It’s important to keep in mind that all clean energy actions taken today are better positioning our nation for tomorrow. www.cefc.com.au (On page 16 we list CEFC achievements)

Local and Global NEWS POWERFUL NUMBERS: Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has launched a $1.16 billion Powering Queensland Plan that includes the $386 million Powering North Queensland Project. Solar Council chief executive John Grimes who staged a summit in Townsville that brought together key players remarked “North Queensland is off and racing and primed to become a national renewable power hub.” The current pipeline of renewable energy projects in Queensland is 6552 MW with more than $3.4 billion in investment and 2,700 jobs. See story on page 12.

The Solar Council’s John Grimes discusses the Powering Queensland Plan with Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk

SOLAR THERMAL is making its debut down under at Port Augusta. SolarReserve is the name behind Aurora, the $650 million, 150 MW solar tower and molten salt storage facility that will generate 1,100 MWh or eight hours of energy storage, delivering power between $75/MWh and $78/MWh. The long awaited solar thermal plant is the first of its kind in Australia but already SolarReserve has set its sights on more plants in SA as well as one in Queensland. Clean energy, storage and security delivered at a relatively low cost solar thermal could be a game changer for Australia. See more on page 14.

ENERGYAUSTRALIA has signed a longterm deal to buy 100 MW of the output of a solar farm to be built in Coleambally, south of Griffith in the NSW Riverina district. French firm Neoen will commence construction in late 2017.

To date the energy giant has signed up for more than 500 MW wind and solar developments including the 48.5 Manildra solar farm in NSW; 80 per cent of output from the Ross River solar farm in Queensland; all output from Victoria’s 60 MW Ganawarra solar farm; and 60 per cent of the 113 MW Bodangora wind farm in NSW.

6 SPRING 2017

VICTORIA is also pushing ahead with large-scale plans that include two 20 MW battery facilities, a $20 million New Energy Jobs fund and $9.37 million commercialscale hydrogen refuelling station among the measures to meet the state target of 50 per cent renewable energy by 2030.

More in ‘States of advancement’ on page 14.

BIG SOLAR: Western Australian based Stellata Energy and UK company Ingenious have joined forces to fund a $200 million pipeline of solar farms across Australia, including a flagship 120 MW ground-mounted project in Merredin in Western Australia, which is expected to generate an annual output of 260 GWh of electricity when it comes online in 2019. The project is designed to be battery ready and is billed as the only grid connected solar farm to include planning approval for batteries.

OVER TO CHILE in South America which aims to obtain 70 per cent of its power from renewable sources by 2050 and is mid way through its four year PV “Techos Solares Públicos” incentive program to stimulate expansion of solar energy and demonstrate the advantages of renewable energy. The first phase involved PV systems with an output of up to 100 kW and now larger projects with outputs up to 400 kW are underway. Fronius Solar Energy has supplied SnapINverters for approximately half of Chile’s public building PV projects to date.

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Local and Global NEWS MORE THAN 35 COUNCILS have joined the Climate Council’s Cities Power Partnership designed to address Australia’s energy gridlock by helping towns and cities across the country take meaningful steps to increase their renewable energy capacity and dramatically curb their emissions. Alarmingly, Australia experienced five consecutive quarters of increasing emissions. Data is lagging but the news is not good: in the 12 months to June 2016 Australia recorded a 0.8 per cent increase in emissions. “The only way the public can keep the government accountable on climate progress is by having regular access to transparent emissions data,” the Climate Council says, emphasising the need for federal government energy policies to tackle emissions.

RECENT POLL FINDINGS confirm that as many as 96 per cent of Australians want the nation’s primary energy to come from renewables.

And up to 82 per cent of regional Australians and 77 per cent of capital city-dwellers place solar in their top three preferred energy sources, according to the Climate Institute’s Climate of the Nation 2017.

The latest Roy Morgan research shows almost one in four Australian households (23.2 per cent) owns a PV system. Uptake is strongest in South Australia (32.8 per cent), followed by Queensland (30.2 per cent) and Western Australia (26.6 per cent). However, Australia’s biggest states lag, in New South Wales 17.7 per cent of households have PV systems and in Victoria the number is 21 per cent. During the next 12 months 94,000 Australian households intend to buy or replace their household PV panels, according to the Morgan poll.

Mayors launching the Cities Power Partnership

COMMUNITY CLIMATE PETITION: Hundreds of individuals from diverse faith communities across Australia spent weeks pounding the nation’s pavements during winter to collect petition signatures calling on political leaders to support deeper reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, a faster transition to a clean energy economy and better support for Australia’s poorest neighbours grappling with the impacts of climate change which is “one of the greatest human rights challenges of our time”.

DROWNING NOT WAVING: Still on climate change, scientists have

DUBAI’S SUSTAINABLE CITY will sport a 10 MW solar installation to power several facilities, including residential villas and leisure complexes. The Sustainable City project aims to showcase a community whose energy needs are met entirely through clean energy sources. Trina Solar was selected as supplier of the 40,000-panel solar array, estimated to produce around 16 GWh per annum.

become increasingly concerned over warmer weather accelerating the melting of the Greenland ice sheet and raising of sea levels. Behind it lies the growth of algae which darkens the surface ice that in turn absorbs more solar radiation than white ice. Already Greenland is adding about 1mm to sea levels each year. Given its size and density, if all Greenland were to melt sea levels across the globe would rise seven metres.

HYDRO VENTURE: The ANU has identified up to 185 potential sites for pumped hydro energy storage in South Australia as part of the ARENA funded study to develop a nationwide map of potential sites.

Chief Scientist Dr Alan Finkel notes pumped hydro storage systems are the most mature electrical energy storage systems available, and they can be dispatched rapidly which means they are well placed to balance peak demand and provide backup for renewable generation.

Turn to pages 30 and 32 for a special feature on hydro electric power and storage.

8 SPRING 2017

Solar & Storage is printed by Printgraphics whose green credentials include:

Power and principle Power play tug-of-war: positive actions speak louder than negative words.

SOLAR EXPORTS: Could Western Australia develop a new export market from solar resources? A prefeasibility study for the $20 billion vision for three 1 GW solar farms in WA’s northwest could harvest and export solar power to Indonesia and other Asian nations via a $9.5 billion 1500 km subsea cable from the Dampier Peninsula to east Java. The study was commissioned by the Pilbara Development Commission.

AS WE WERE GOING TO PRINT the prime minister was sticking to form by urging AGL to maintain operations at the Liddell coal fired power station beyond the planned 2022 closure, and some geezer was spouting the virtues of re-commissioning Hazelwood’s brown coal plant, the nation’s dirtiest power station.

This was occurring at a time two of the most devastating hurricanes the world has ever seen, Harvey and Irma, wreaked havoc and left a massive trail of destruction in a post-apocalyptic landscape. Meanwhile over in southeast Asia extensive flooding created a widespread humanitarian disaster. Thousands of homeless and lives ruined.

Never before has the word ‘catastrophe’ been heard so often. Will these latest catastrophes lead to more widespread call to arms to combat greenhouse gas emissions that create the warmer air, rising sea levels and water vapour in air masses and the destructive forces that arise? The storm surges reinforce the need for all nations across the world to drastically increase the share of renewable energy.

In other words, recalibrate – fast.

None more so than Australia which is failing miserably. We now have the highest greenhouse gas emissions per capita in the world.

Yet we have the best solar resources in the world.

And the cost of solar power is lower than ever; it’s far more economical than coal and costs continue to tumble. The benefits of clean energy are abundant, as are the resources on which they are based.

Fortunately the progressive state governments of Australia are taking positive action backed by forwardlooking renewable targets. Actions that will have a lasting impact on future generations.

Trailblazers On the following pages of this magazine we look at the large-scale solar boom, including the 18 solar plants planned for Queensland along with 500 kilometres of new transmission lines.

Dawn of a new era for solar energy in Australia: SolarReserve’s CSP (similar to that pictured here in Nevada) will take shape at Port Augusta.

Topping the list of significant developments however is news of the SolarReserve solar thermal plant that will grace the landscape of Port Augusta, the coal town that for decades has suffered under a toxic plume of coal ash.

Now the scene is set for a brighter future, and everything about the solar thermal plant is gargantuan: costing $650 million the 150 MW facility with molten salt is the first of its kind for developer SolarReserve in Australia. The plant will provide up to eight hours storage or 1100 MWh. What’s not so large is the cost of delivery at $78 MWh – significantly lower than that of coal.

Still in South Australia, Premier Jay Weatherill has backed development of a 100 MW battery facility to sit alongside a wind farm in the state’s northwest. The lithium-ion battery plant that eclipses all others will become the world’s largest, and we suspect one of the most watched. Could that too set a precedent?

Already Victoria has announced plans for two 20 MW storage facilities as it pushes towards its renewable energy target of 40 per cent by 2025.

The reaction of the federal government? Dismissive to the point of hostile, deriding state renewable targets and large-scale storage as “an experiment in energy”.

But attack, they say, is the best form of defence and as the Solar Council’s chief executive John Grimes points out the federal government – unlike Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and Victoria – has no idea. No plan, that is, to encourage investment in new renewable energy beyond the 33,000 GWh Renewable Energy Target of 2020 that would produce 23.5 per cent renewable electricity.

Powering on Meantime the people’s power plant – rooftop PV – has hit the 6 GW milestone with more households intent on combatting spiraling energy prices, reducing reliance on fossil fuels and gaining greater energy independence.

Solar & Storage 9

ENERGY MARKET

The Climate Institute revealed that fewer than one in ten conservative voters want a fossil fuel-dominated energy system in the future. Their poll conducted by Galaxy found no fewer than 77 per cent of Liberal supporters think governments should implement a plan for the orderly closure of coal-fired power stations and their replacement with clean energy, and 51 per cent of Liberal voters think Australia should phase out coal generation within 20 years.

Ash blanketing Port Augusta from the regional city’s former coal-fired power station was too toxic to even be classified as waste fill But what about the Finkel review you ask, the Blueprint for the Future Security of the National Electricity Market released in June containing 50 recommendations including, most importantly, a Clean Energy Target?

Let’s take a closer look at targets. The data is worrying. RepuTex modeling indicates a minimum CET of 28 per cent would reduce national emissions by just 8 per cent on 2005 emissions levels therefore not reduce electricity emissions until 2095 to 2101, more than 45 years after the target of net-zero emissions prior to 2050 under the Paris Agreement.

An alternative CET of 45 per cent would achieve zero emissions by approximately 2045 and the higher target of 63 per cent would shave off another decade and phase out electricity sector emissions by 2035.

What’s the chance? According to a leaked official document the federal government is “unwilling to legislate a CET & gradually working their way out of meaningful implementation of [Finkel’s] other 49 recommendations.”

To be seen to be taking some action over the energy market, the coalition – whose majority is on tenterhooks – recently put the spotlight on household power prices and conducted a “showdown” with energy companies. We are still wondering what tangible result that produced, other than the recommendation that consumers check they are on the best deal. Meantime energy prices, security and affordability continue to dominate question time in Parliament. Lots of talk about ‘security, affordability and reliability’ but at the end of the day not much progress.

The federal energy minister finds plenty of time however to craft media statements attacking the shadow energy minister and state Labor energy ministers over their renewables agendas.

How about devoting attention to what really matters by focusing on big picture, sustainable energy solutions. Then again why not simply leave it up to the states to take charge? Sounds like a plan.

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STATES OF ADVANCEMENT

The ascent of solar The state of Queensland has never looked better: widespread interest and investment in renewables is reshaping the energy market and boosting energy security and generating a swag of jobs in the process.

IN LATE AUGUST the Solar and Energy Storage Councils hosted the Powering North Queensland Summit where Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk spelt out the enormous employment and economic opportunities that renewable energy is bringing to North Queensland.

“The state government’s $386 million Powering North Queensland Plan builds projects and infrastructure to connect new projects with the grid and the National Electricity Market,” the Premier said.

The new 500-kilometre transmission line that will carry 2000 MW of large-scale wind, solar and hydro projects is integral to the grand vision that is already materialising.

Currently 830 MW of large-scale renewable energy projects are being constructed or are at financial close in North Queensland where more than 1,700 jobs have been created. Projects have attracted $1.6 billion in private investment and are reshaping the state’s energy landscape. Among the large-scale solar PV projects underway in Northern Queensland is the 116 MW Sun Metals solar farm and the 148 MW Ross River solar farm.

Meanwhile significant energy storage projects in the region are being driven by AES Energy Storage and Genex Kidston with its 250 MW Pumped Hydro Storage plant.

The size and scope of developments present massive opportunities for suppliers, investors and finance companies, construction companies, project managers, solar and energy storage companies and workers – and up to 200 of these very people gathered at the Townsville Summit to learn more.

Sunny today and tomorrow Speaking at the Summit the Queensland Premier, whose government has committed to 50 per cent renewables by 2030, said, “We are proud that this new industry will generate more electricity, more investment and more jobs for Queenslanders. This injection of investment and jobs in renewable energy will help us offer secure and affordable electricity for Queensland homes and Queensland businesses.”

The $386 million Powering North Queensland Plan forms part of the broader $1.16 billion Powering Queensland Plan that includes a reverse auction for up to 400 MW of renewable energy, including 100 MW of energy storage; and ABOVE: Sun Metals proposed 116 MW solar farm

12 SPRING 2017

improving large-scale project facilitation, planning and network connections.

“[Queensland] will not wait for the NEM to be fixed [or] the findings of the Finkel review to be implemented, although that needs to be done… we will get on with the job of attracting more projects, investment and jobs as we strengthen our energy mix,” the Premier said.

She acknowledged the significant support of the CEFC, whose recently retired chief executive Oliver Yates flew up for the Summit.

In all the pipeline of renewable energy projects in Queensland stands at 6552 MW involving more than $3.4 billion in investment and 2,700 jobs. A further $6.7 billion will be invested in renewables in Queensland by 2020, creating an additional 6,500 jobs every year.

Renewable power hub The media have declared North Queensland is “at the dawn of a sun-powered energy and economic boom”. A view that is strongly supported by John Grimes, chief executive of the Solar and Energy Storage Council, who says the region is set for a $5 billion renewable energy windfall.

“There has been an unprecedented level of investment in renewable energy in North Queensland in the last two years… Queensland has 17 large-scale projects underway that have created 2200 new jobs in regional centres.

“Queensland’s energy revolution is unstoppable and opportunities in this sector are boundless,” he said. “North Queensland is off and racing and primed to become a national renewable power hub.

“We must think big, and strengthen North Queensland’s capacity to secure long-term, steady jobs for the region. Renewables are the cheapest energy source and we have the technology, the natural assets and the local skills to build new renewable energy grids for Queenslanders.

“Not only will North Queensland secure its own energy future, it will lead the charge nationally.”

The Solar and Energy Storage Councils would like to acknowledge the support of Summit sponsors Redback, 360Energy, Supply Partners, CWP, INfigen, WIndlab, Vector, Decmil, Vermeer, and the City of Townsville.

Queensland’s Expert Panel found that 50 per cent renewables by 2030 could drive $6.7 billion of new investment in the state and deliver a net increase of 6,700 full-time jobs per year between 2020 and 2030.

STATE RACE

States of advancement Several Australian states have set targets to reduce emissions and are now developing renewable energy resources and policies that support the transition. Here we look at some of the significant developments and overall progress.

FULL MARKS to frontrunners South Australia, the ACT and Tasmania which sit at the top of the Climate Council’s Renewables Ready scorecard which ranks states on their policy support for renewable energy and emissions reduction targets, percentage of renewable energy in electricity supply and large-scale renewable energy capacity.

Right now Queensland is racing ahead by planning up to 17 large-scale solar and storage plants, however there is a dark side. Should the Carmichael coalmine in the Galilee Basin proceed, the increase in emissions will greatly exceed the emissions savings achieved by the state pursuing its renewable energy targets.

The Victorian government is rolling out a series of large-scale solar projects including two 20 MW large-scale battery energy storage facilities valued at $25 million that will provide 100 MWh for greater grid security. Bold step, big news.

South Australia is taking a giant leap: in 2020 Port Augusta finally gets a solar thermal molten salt plant.

SolarReserve’s 150 MW Aurora plant will deliver 1,100 MWh or eight hours of energy storage.

A first for Australia, but not the last, SolarReserve believes six more solar thermal plants could be developed. South Australia will also be home to the world’s largest battery by the end of the year with Tesla’s 100 MW/129 MWh lithium-ion battery storage facility taking shape at Neoen’s Hornsdale Wind Farm.

Premier Jay Weatherill’s government is credited for its world-leading support but no such accolade from the

14 SPRING 2017

coalition, which dismisses SA and Victoria’s moves to shore up reliability and security through storage as “An experiment with energy”.

Foresight and clear energy policies that acknowledge and facilitate renewables are clearly not a government priority.

New South Wales has the greatest capacity of new renewable energy under construction in 2017 and one of the largest increases in its share of renewable electricity over the past year with a doubling of generation, much from large-scale solar. In 2017 these projects account for 1,018 MW of large-scale renewable energy, including five solar farms with the highest capacity under construction.

Western Australia gets an honourable mention in the Climate Council scorecard for the largest growth in rooftop solar: today PV is seen on one in four WA homes. State policy too has evolved with a commitment to funding for renewable energy and storage research.

The citizen’s power plant – rooftop PV: Australia can lay claim to the global record per capita with 6 GW rooftop PV across 1.7 million households led by Queensland, SA and WA. More about the PV market on page 18.

The Climate Council says all state targets are “broadly consistent” with the level of renewable energy needed across Australia by 2030 so it can “do its fair share” in keeping global temperature rise below two degrees Celsius (2°C). But we could do much better: Australia has the potential to generate a much higher proportion of its electricity from renewables – renewable energy resources could potentially provide 500 times the amount of electricity we currently use – without compromising security.

Renewables Ready: States Leading the Charge by Petra Stock, Dr David Alexander, Andrew Stock and Greg Bourne. The Climate Council is an independent, crowdfunded organisation providing information on climate change to the Australian public. www.climatecouncil.org.au

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CEFC

Harnessing clean energy CEFC in action

Seeing the big picture CEFC’s investment commitments have contributed to $11 billion in clean energy projects in Australia in its first four years. The result comes on the back of a substantial increase in CEFC investment commitments in the 12 months to 30 June 2017 which saw the CEFC commit almost $2.1 billion to 35 individual transactions.

This compared with $837 million in commitments to 15 transactions in 2015-2016.

Importantly, each dollar of CEFC investment commitments in 2016-2017 was matched by more than $2 from the private sector, with the investment portfolio expected to generate a return above the Government’s costs of funds.

The breadth and depth of the CEFC investment commitments signals strong growth in business and investor appetite for clean energy assets, says CEFC chief executive Ian Learmonth.

“Australia’s energy transition is undergoing considerable scrutiny, reflecting the scale of the challenge and the scope of the opportunity. As discussed in the Finkel report, Australia needs a resilient, balanced and secure electricity system,

which includes large-scale renewable energy, energy storage and other initiatives.

“We continue to take seriously our public policy purpose to increase the flow of finance into the clean energy sector. Decarbonisation requires targeted action to drive down emissions, while moving clean energy technologies down the cost curve to bring diversity to our energy mix.

“Although we have seen a considerable increase in the level of clean energy investment, the reality is that we are at the beginning of this transition. A commitment to long-term investment remains essential to decarbonisation.”

Learmonth also commented on Australia’s enormous potential in clean energy, including exciting new technologies to further emissions reduction that includes grid-scale batteries and pumped hydro storage, as well as emerging behind the meter and demand management solutions.

“We expect these technologies to move centre stage in the clean energy ecosystem, alongside our increasingly established clean energy infrastructure,” he said.

A former coal-mining hub in north Queensland is being transformed into a solar hot spot with two new large-scale solar farms commencing construction.

Developer Edify Energy’s latest largescale solar projects include the 150 MW Daydream Solar Farm and the 50 MW Hayman Solar Farm located near the 57.5 MW Whitsunday Solar Farm and the 57.5 MW Hamilton Solar Farm currently being developed.

Another 42 MW solar farm is being developed by RATCH-Australia Corporation, at the site of the disused Collinsville power station in north Queensland.

All five projects have secured finance from the CEFC which is lending about $90 million to the latest Edify Energy projects as part of the CEFC’s broader investment in both large and small-scale solar. This now involves commitments of more than $900 million for projects and programs valued at around $2.7 billion.

CEFC 2016-2017 NEW COMMITMENTS TRANSACTIONS

NEW CEFC COMMITMENTS

AND

2016-2017

2016 - 2017

$6.7B

OTHER FINANCE

PROJECT VALUE

SINCE CEFC INCEPTION

2014-2015: $484M

$4.3B

CEFC FINANCE

CEFC 2016-2017 FINANCE IN ACTION 1

2

3

2.

3.

16 SPRING 2017

Renewables, retailers, network service providers Property, infrastructure, manufacturing, agriculture Transport

14

GREEN BONDS AUSTRALIA-WIDE

Our investments focus on industry sectors with the strongest potential for decarbonisation: 1.

$30M

CLEAN ENERGY INNOVATION FUND

2015-2016: $837M

DECARBONISATION PATHWAYS

CATALYSING CLEAN ENERGY FINANCE

$844M CEFC

$1.1B CEFC

$102M CEFC

TOTAL PROJECT VALUE

TOTAL PROJECT VALUE

TOTAL PROJECT VALUE

$3.3B

$2.8B

$382M

ENERGY EFFICIENT ASSET FINANCE

4

TRANSACTIONS IN FIRST YEAR

57%

CEFC PARTICIPATION SINCE INCEPTION

2,000

INVESTMENTS

PV MARKET

PV=a mighty 6 GW We got there! Who could have predicted a 6 GW PV market?

Few punters would have been on target.

The magic month was August this year when small-scale renewable energy hit the record-breaking capacity.

So, repeating: Australian homes and businesses have collectively reached the milestone of 6000 megawatt capacity, enough to power more than 1.8 million homes or every home in Sydney.

There are now almost 2.8 million small-scale installations in Australia. Queensland leads the tally board, recording the largest uptake of systems under the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme*. But several parts of suburban Perth are surging ahead, as shown in the Climate Council’s postcode shiners graphic on the right.

The Clean Energy Regulator which oversees small-scale certificate generation notes as a collective Australian installations have the capacity to generate – and just as importantly displace – approximately 11.2 million MWh of electricity each year.

It’s little more than a year since we hit the 5 GW PV milestone.

“More than one in five Australian households now have solar panels installed on their roof, and that’s the highest rate Boom times per capita in the world,” Clean Energy Regulator Executive General The surge in demand is attributed to a convergence of factors including Manager Mark Williamson said. “It’s remarkable.” the decline in system costs accompanied by rise in grid power prices.

We agree. Earlier this year analysts were not predicting quite such a Put simply, the economics are stacking up. surge in solar systems; there was little indication of the momentum that Bill shock continues to make the news, Ric Brazzale says “The market has lay ahead. A small blanket of gloom descended on the industry with expanded dramatically in response to higher power prices and media around 2016 installations one tenth lower than 2015 levels, which in turn were higher prices.”

22 per cent lower than 2014 levels.

Added to the mix are unreliable grid supplies, declining (or changing) There was a small hint: a surge in the last two months of 2016, feed in tariffs, and homeowners are generally disillusioned with energy but no guarantees that would carry forward to 2017. It did, and the companies, wanting greater freedom and independence. Attractive finance industry which is on a high is not only installing more but also larger packages are putting solar in reach of more homeowners. systems: the average residential installation in 2016 reached an average Increased awareness is driving more schools, community and business 4.5 kW, up from 4.2 kW in 2015, according to Green Energy Markets. groups to install solar systems. ... And so the market momentum makes sense.

What next year and beyond?

Is the sky the limit? Is the surge sustainable or have we reached saturation levels, have we plateaued?

What sort of an impact will increasingly affordable storage systems create? Will the dire predictions about mortgage stress hurt the industry?

We will leave that commentary to GEM’s market analyst Tristan Edis who in the summer issue of this magazine hopes to provide some insights into what lies ahead. *Small-scale systems include capacity of up to 100 kW which is about 20 times the size of the average household system.

18 SPRING 2017

Give us Renewables!

Elsewhere in this magazine we take a look at polls indicating what the public wants, and clearly the overwhelming majority want clean, renewable energy.

That was certainly the finding of the Lowy Institute whose 2017 poll found one of the most dramatic movements in attitudes since polling began is that of consumer attitudes towards global warming and climate change.

FOR THE PAST 11 YEARS the Lowy Institute Poll has contained several questions on climate change as well as a range of policy approaches for dealing with global warming. This year, in the context of ‘heated debate’ about Australia’s energy supply, the Lowy Poll inserted a question about the role of renewables and traditional energy sources in Australia’s future energy supply.

No surprise about the finding: the Lowy Institute revealed 81 per cent of Australians want governments to focus on clean energy sources; just 17 per cent want the focus to be on coal and gas.

Released a couple of months back – but sentiment highly unlikely to have shifted in the interim – the findings of the 2017 poll reinforce the strong preference for renewable energy over fossil fuels. At the time Solar & Storage pointed to the inability of certain noisy backbenchers to listen to their constituents, instead still banging the (old, tired, battered) drum for dirty, emissions intensive fossil fuel powered energy. Technology has moved on a bit since the 1800s, some thinking hasn’t.

The figure below illustrates the high expectations for solar energy provided by the response to the question: “Which energy source will be primary driver ten years from now?”

The report states: “Even in the midst of heated debate and government rhetoric about the need for energy security following recent energy blackouts at the time the Poll survey was taken, an overwhelming

3 majority of Australian adults (81 per cent) want the government to “focus on renewables, even if this means we may need to invest more in infrastructure to make the system more reliable”.

Fewer than one in five (17 per cent) say “the government should focus on traditional energy sources such as coal and gas, even if this means the environment may suffer to some extent”.

In its 2016 poll the Lowy Institute found almost all Australians (88 per cent) agreed that “the use of fossil fuels is in decline around the world and Australia should invest more in alternative energy sources or risk being left behind”. Only 53 per cent agreed (45 per cent disagreed) that “Australia has an abundant supply of fossil fuels and we should continue to use and export them to keep our economy strong”.

Back in 2015, solar energy was the top response by far when Australians were asked which source will be the primary source of energy in ten years: 43 per cent nominated solar energy, with just 17 per cent selecting coal.

In other results from the 2017 Lowy Institute Poll, most Australians (57 per cent, up 11 points since 2014) regard climate change as a critical threat to Australia’s vital interests in the next ten years. This places climate change in the top three of 11 serious threats, behind only international terrorism and the nuclear threat from North Korea.

More Australians regard the threat of climate change as more serious to the nation than a severe downturn in the global economy, foreign investment in Australia, asylum seekers coming to Australia by boat, and the foreign policies of China and Russia. www.lowyinstitute.org The annual Lowy Institute Poll is one of the Lowy Institute’s flagship publications. It is the leading tracking survey on Australian foreign policy, providing a reliable vehicle for understanding Australian attitudes towards a wide range of issues, while being independent and methodologically rigorous.

Robust findings: The 2017 Lowy Institute Poll telephone survey of 1200 Australian adults was conducted by the Social Research Centre between 1 and 21 March 2017. The maximum sampling variance (‘error margin’) of all Polls is approximately +/- 2.8 per cent.

Perhaps a resident of the Warringah electorate could pass on the latest Lowy Poll findings to their sitting member?

Lowy Poll Interactive 2017 - Renewables and Energy Supply

Solar & Storage 19

Local and Global NEWS CHINA’S PV INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (CPIA) reports that in the first half of 2017 China added 24.4 GW, representing an increase of 9 per cent year-on-year. During the second quarter of this year approximately 17.19 GW was added, in June alone a massive 13.15 GW. During the first half of this year cell production output increased by 28 per cent to reach close to 32 GW, and module output increased by 25.9 per cent year on year reaching 34 GW. China’s total installed solar PV power generation capacity now stands at 101.82 GW, comprising 84.39 GW at utility-scale and 14.73 GW in distributed solar PV. China now sits less than 3 GW from its 13th Five-YearPlan (2016-2020) target of 105 GW.

SPACE AGE: NASA successfully deployed its new Roll Out Solar Array (ROSA) with lighter and more flexible panels than the standard folded arrays on older satellites. NASA ground controllers remotely rolled out the solar array, where it remained attached on a robotic arm for a week undergoing a series of operational tests to examine how the system responds to microgravity, vibrations or extreme temperatures. ROSA lends itself to more compact packing in a rocket for launch, and the technology could be adapted to different sizes and used to empower satellites for different purposes as television, GPS or weather forecasting, according to NASA.

BATTERY POWERED UK: The UK has launched an Industrial Strategy’s landmark Faraday Challenge, a four-year, £246 million ($400 million) investment round aimed at boosting research and development of expertise in battery technology and position the UK a global leader in battery storage technical expertise. The bid kicks off with a £45 million ($73 million) ‘Battery Institute’ to establish a centre for battery research, aimed at making battery technology more accessible and more affordable. Lobby group RenewableUK said “Renewables are a mainstream technology, reliably providing over 25 per cent of our electricity. The advent of battery storage is the missing puzzle piece which will allow us to maximise the potential of our world-beating renewable energy resources here in the UK.”

THE WORLD BANK has granted $US150 million to the government of Kenya for the development of off-grid and micro grid PV solutions for Kenya’s remote regions lacking connection with the country’s power transmission network.

The funds will finance solar systems for off-grid homes, businesses and community facilities to bring electricity to around 1.3 million people in 277,000 households. Back in 2013 just 27 per cent of Kenya’s population had access to power, by 2016 that had increased to 55 per cent. The government’s plan to boost power also includes the construction of grid-connected solar facilities and one $116 million project that is being financed by China.

20 SPRING 2017

SUPER SUNNIES: researchers have developed a pair of solar-generating glasses using coloured, semi-transparent cells, based on hydrocarbons. The cells power a system which measures and displays ambient temperature and illumination intensity and according to Germany’s Karlsruhe Institute of Technology they could pave the way for other future applications such as the integration of organic solar cells into windows or overhead glazing. The lenses are fitted to a commercial frame and are 1.6mm thick with a weight of 6 grams – comparable to standard sunglasses. A microprocessor and two small displays are integrated into the arms. The glasses also work indoors in light conditions and lenses could generate 200 milliwatt of power, enough to operate devices such as a hearing aid or step counter.

BRISBANE-BASED ENERGY TECHNOLOGY STARTUP Redback Technologies recently hosted a visit by a VIP when Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk popped in at Redback HQ located at the University of Queensland campus.

“Redback is at the forefront of demonstrating that battery storage technology is becoming more affordable and highlighting opportunities for battery storage and intelligent energy management technologies for secure and affordable energy,” the Premier said.

Redback has received two funding injections totalling $1.96 million from the state government that has set a renewables target of 50 per cent by 2030 and is steering renewable energy projects in Queensland with more than $3.4 billion in investment and 2,700 jobs.

Redback was founded in Brisbane with just three staff, and through collaboration and support from the Queensland Government, UQ, the solar industry and private sector investors including EnergyAustralia, has grown to 54 staff, including 47 at its Brisbane head office. That is just the genesis: the company plans to double its current workforce over the next six months.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Innovation Minister Leeanne Enoch, University of Queensland Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Peter Høj and Redback Technologies Managing Director Phil Livingston during the Premier’s visit to Redback Technologies

EVs gear up EV SALES IN AUSTRALIA

BUYERS (Australia)

2011: 49

100

2012: 253

100

100

100

64% business 34% private 2% government

2013: 293

100

100

100

2014: 1322

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

2015: 1771

100

100

(Australia) 100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

2016: 1369* (0.1% of the market)

FACTS AND FINDINGS

Outlander and Renault Kangoo ZE (van)

Next 18 months: 7 new EV models + updates available 3 costing <$60,000

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

PUBLIC CHARGING STATIONS (Australia)

*701 plug-in hybrid EVs, 668 fully electric 23% sales fall from 2015

476: EV charging stations AC: the majority of chargers in Australia 2.4 kW to 22 kW: range of power level 11 kW: average charge c. 50 km: range per hour 40: DC charging stations

GLOBAL TALLY 2 million: EVs on the roads 40% increase in EV sales from 2015 to 2016

750,000 sold in 2016

Source: The State of Electric Vehicles in Australia by ClimateWorks Australia on behalf of the Electric Vehicle Council, June 2017

16 models available for sale in 2016 $60,000+: cost of 13 of the 16 models <$60,000: Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi

“

Electric vehicles can be powered by renewable energy and could potentially generate Australian manufacture of batteries and electric vehicle components.

”

Daly River is set to become the first remote Indigenous community in the Northern Territory to be powered by solar and battery thanks to the roll out of the $55 million Solar Energy Transformation Program (SETuP), a project jointly funded by Northern Territory Government and led by the Power and Water Corporation.

• Storage on steroids – large-scale developments, states lead the charge • Battery powered electric vehicles • Hydro electric power with storage

• Selectronic Island •S team accumulator: an alternative … a nd a round-up of storage projects and advances

Founding members

SIGNIFICANT ADVANCES in energy storage can be seen around the country, batteries are shoring up energy supplies in a variety of locations and applications including large-scale solar plants, wind farms, off-grid defence bases, and salt mines.

The biggest development to date however is the 100 MW/ 129 MWh lithium-ion Tesla battery destined for the 315 MW Hornsdale Wind Farm in South Australia. Scheduled for completion by late this year it will become the nation’s largest grid-connected battery and the world’s largest lithium ion battery storage facility.

Detractors may call this an ‘experiment in energy’ however the plant is significant on many levels, including its ability to showcase the vital role of battery storage power and security.

In another first for South Australia and storage, a new 150 MW solar thermal molten salt power plant will be developed by SolarReserve in Port Augusta and supply a mighty 1,110 MWh or eight hours of storage.

Victoria and Queensland are rolling out large-scale battery storage for greater grid security; the ACT Government is steering one of the largest household battery storage programs in the world, and the Northern Territory is catching the wave: a government-owned electricity provider is planning a 5 MW battery storage system in Alice Springs.

These and other developments are the forerunners of greater things to come. Storage is tipped to take centre stage in the build up to net zero emissions by 2050 and far greater reliance on renewable energy across Australia.

Platinum members

Gold members

Silver members

Standards For many months a dark cloud hung over the storage industry with draft national standards classifying all lithium-ion battery storage systems as a fire risk and requiring installation in bunkers, preventing installation in homes, garages or buildings attached to homes. The ramifications would haven been widespread and severe, essentially the future of Australia’s smart energy industry was at stake. Overseas based storage suppliers too were understandably alarmed by the proposal.

The Energy Storage Council led a campaign that resulted in 3000 voicing concern to Standards Australia over the extreme and unnecessary restraint, a draft that was not evidence based and was inconsistent with international best practice.

It’s back to the drawing board for Standards Australia which has now paused the development of the standard to allow fundamental questions around the nature and scope of the standard to be resolved.

“This is exactly what we have been calling for,” the Energy Storage Council told its members. “The draft was not fit for purpose, and instead of fixing it before public comment, your action has been needed to make the point and steer the process in the right direction.”

The ESC will continue to press for evidence-based standards to guide industry and provide best practice outcomes for consumers.

24 SPRING 2017

Bronze members Amplitude Consultants Auspac Energy Technologies Aussie Off Grid Solar Energy Aztech International B&R Enclosures BALM Electrical Betta Batteries Cola Solar Crystal Solar Energy CSA Services DPA Solar Dynamic Solar

Energy Smart Water.

Enervision Australia Fiamm Australia Freshwater Group global-roam Governance Insight Green Sun Solar Greenlink Solar Grid Edge Helios Renewable Energy Hybrid Aust

I Want Energy Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials Island Solar K&L Gates Lithium Battery Systems Log-On Electrical (MyPowerMP) Metrowest Midnight Energy MO Energy Natural Solar

Navitus Solar Nexen Energy Off Grid Power Solutions Orion Computers Platinum Solar & Electrical Powerplus Solutions Pu Neng QGE Renewable Energy Installations Reposit Power

Revolusun power Solar Calculator Solar Hybrid Conversions Solar Red SolarQuotes.com.au Standard Solar SWS Australia Tropical Energy Solutions Velocity Energy Wattwatchers ZAPD Energy Zest Energy

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STORAGE NEWS and PRODUCT UPDATES DALY RIVER lies south of Litchfield Park in a remote part of the Northern Territory but will soon make its mark thanks to renewables. Its remote Indigenous community is the first in the Northern Territory to be powered by solar and battery.

BOLD NEW CHAPTER: one big step forward for storage with the development in South Australia of what will become the world’s largest lithium ion battery storage system: a 100 MW/129 MWh Tesla Powerpack. The scope of the project at Hornsdale Wind Farm in Jamestown has generated enormous interest as it marks a move toward large-scale storage solutions with widespread benefits including energy security.

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill and Tesla founder Elon Musk together with French renewable energy company Neoen plan to complete the project by early December.

Weatherill says the development positions South Australia at the forefront of global energy storage technology and reinforces South Australia’s world-leading role in tackling global warming. He also says that the project demonstrates that renewables can provide dependable, distributable power that will turn a new page in Australia’s energy future.

“We are leading the world in battery storage [which] is the future of our national energy market, and the eyes of the world will be following our leadership in this space,” the SA Premier said.

A 5 MW GRID-TIED LITHIUM ION BATTERY storage system with capacity for 40 minutes is earmarked for the Territory Generation Alice Springs Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project. Designed to improve reliability on the network while helping smoothly switch energy use between renewable sources and the grid as needed, the system includes capacity to ‘absorb’ overloads into the system of up to 7.5 MW for 60 seconds.

New Zealand based Vector will be responsible for the design, engineering, construction, and installation of the system and once commissioned, will also be responsible for ongoing maintenance. The battery system is expected to be installed and commissioned in the Sadadeen Valley by the end of the year.

26 SPRING 2017

The system incorporates a lithium-ion battery charged by 3,200 solar panels that replace the diesel engines soaking up 400,000 litres of fuel annually.

The development is funded by the $55 million Solar Energy Transformation Program (SETuP) led by the Power and Water Corporation and jointly funded by Northern Territory Government with ARENA kicking in $27.5 million.

Once complete, SETuP aims to deliver 10 MW of solar energy across 28 remote communities in the Northern Territory, reducing their reliance on diesel fuel by around 15 per cent and saving up to 94 million litres of fuel over the lifetime of the project.

So far, more than 10,500 solar panels have been installed, providing 5,000 kWh of energy per day to more than 570 homes across 10 remote communities.

Importantly, the project is seen as an important step towards transforming the way energy is supplied to remote communities in Australia and demonstrates how renewable energy can reduce the reliance on diesel.

GREAT GIG FOR NT: Darwin could be home to Australia’s first lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant. Energy Renaissance’s proposed 1 GW factory will receive support from the Northern Territory government and should be in operation by late 2018.

Artist’s impression of Renaissance One

REDBACK TECHNOLOGIES is playing a key role in a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) trial in the land of the long white cloud (sunshine too). Energy generator and retailer Contact selected Redback’s Smart Hybrid System to be used in the two-year solar and battery technology trial designed to provide support in the event of a natural disaster or when the grid is under pressure during peak times or is compromised due to outages.

The project was developed in partnership with Wellington Electricity and Wellington City Council and includes 25 homes in the Wellington area.

The project is the next step in Redback Technologies’ international expansion.

Earlier this year the company struck a significant deal with Duserve Facilities Management earlier this year to expand into Dubai, other parts of the Middle East, and also North America.

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STORAGE NEWS and PRODUCT UPDATES ABB’S LATEST ADDITION to the TRIO family is the TRIO-TM, a three-phase string solution with power ratings up to 60 kW, for cost efficient large decentralised PV systems. The TRIO-TM is described as suitable for both commercial and utility applications, and for both rooftop and ground-mounted installations. It comes with separate and configurable AC and DC compartments, which can remain separately wired from the inverter module inside the system. It also benefits from the wiring box configuration, including up to 16 DC inputs, AC and DC switches and monitored type II AC and DC surge arresters. abb.com/solarinverters.

APRICUS AUSTRALIA has been selected by California based thermal energy storage company Ice Energy as exclusive distributor for the Ice Bear HVAC + energy storage solutions throughout Australia. Apricus will now sell, distribute and install the Ice Bear line to Australia’s utility, commercial, industrial and residential markets and will be responsible for installation and service. Initially the products will be imported from the US but as sales increase Apricus could take on local manufacture.

Apricus Australia Director Chris Taylor said the hybrid AC/energy storage system for the home, with its ability to provide cooling 24/7, makes ice with excess solar generation and cools for four hours without needing electricity to create the cooling for that period “is a truly disruptive product tailor-made for Australia”. http://apricus.com.au/

AUSTRALIAN BATTERY MAKER REDFLOW LIMITED has established a company in Thailand to manage production of its zincbromine flow batteries in South East Asia. The move from North America positions Redflow closer to its most lucrative markets within Australia, Oceania and southern Africa. The move also helps contain production costs.

In other news, Redflow fulfilled its largest battery order to date, supplying New Zealand-based telecommunication systems integrator Hitech Solutions which is constructing modular energy systems sized to suit the requirements of each destination site and will be deployed progressively across multiple locations in a Pacific Island nation.

NOT SO IN-THE-DARK: Agriculture firm Costa is investing millions of dollars in solar power and battery storage technologies in its first solar power plant at its Monarto mushroom farm with the hi-tech glasshouse in Adelaide. The second stage of the multi-million dollar solar project will also supply power to the mushroom farm and double its weekly output.

28 SPRING 2017

GERMAN BATTERY MAKER SONNEN has stepped up energy sharing through the introduction of community sonnenFlat in which sonnen covers the cost of a household’s grid power in exchange for the household giving sonnen access to the power stored in the battery to draw down and sell into the grid at time of peak energy use. Under the scheme the German battery storage maker will charge a flat fee (of $30, $40 or $50 a month depending on the size of the dwelling and capacity of its rooftop solar array) for households installing the company’s energy storage systems. By absorbing all electricity charges the company saves the average home the significant amount of around $3,000 a year. “sonnenBatterie technology is dramatically changing not only household energy use and making households less dependent on electricity grid power, but ultimately the way the utilities deliver power to Australian households and businesses,” company co-founder Christoph Ostermann said.

In other news sonnen is joining forces with ZEN Energy to trim rural power bills by increasing the accessibility of solar and storage systems in a plan designed to allow entire towns to operate fully on renewable energy.

It is believed that a dozen NSW Councils have expressed interest and that NSW Treasury Corporation may provide low-interest loans for the project which has also attracted interest from a superannuation fund.

WAY OUT WEST more than 800 kilometres from Perth sits the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory. The site was chosen for its excellent sky coverage, radio quietness and ionospheric stability, allowing “ground-breaking” astronomy research through one of the world’s most sophisticated telescopes.

The observatory is now breaking new ground with the installation of the largest batteries ever designed and assembled in Australia. Energy Made Clean, the wholly owned subsidiary Carnegie Clean Energy, completed the factory build and testing of 1.6 MW solar PV inverter and 2.6 MWh Battery Energy Storage Systems for the CSIRO, and the BESS and PV have been successfully delivered to the site.

The BESS and PV array are being integrated and commissioned with the existing power station on site at Murchison.

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The first Choice for Stored Energy Solutions

Pumped hydro-electric storage – would you like solar or wind with that?

A closer look at a major talking point of today: the power of pumped hydro and storage.

“Pumped hydro storage is an economic solution that seems to pose a lower investment risk when compared to any other storage system.”

OVER PAST MONTHS, there have been many discussions centred around pumped hydro schemes. Most notable of which is the current government announcement to expand the iconic Snowy Hydro system as well as South Australia’s investigation into pumped hydro from Spencer Gulf.

It is well known that some renewable energy systems are intermittent and their output behaviour is unpredictable and weather-dependent. Hence, when they are connected to the grid, frequency regulation and power quality can become an issue and it raises questions of reliability. To solve these issues of reliability, and to accommodate inexpensive renewable energy, changes to the energy market and its regulation must occur. However the technical solution that will unlock the full potential of renewable energy is the deployment of energy storage on a large scale.

Pumped hydro-electric storage is a mature and established concept of energy storage as it has been in operation since the 1890s. It is the largest available grid storage system in the world constituting 97 per cent of the world’s total energy storage (~143 GW over 40 countries).

The European Union and Japan have the biggest systems with net capacities of 38.3 GW and 26.2 GW respectively and it acts as their major energy storage

Figure 1: Pumped Hydro Storage Schematic

30 SPRING 2017

system. It has traditionally been used to balance the base-load power plants (coal, gas etc) by allowing them to operate at peak efficiency and lowering the need for peaking plants that operate on gas or oil. With the rise in renewable energy penetration into the grid and the need to handle the intermittent nature of these energy sources, pumped hydro storage systems are being given serious thought to help abate the fluctuating output generated.

How does pumped hydro work?

This system works by pumping water from a lower reservoir to a higher reservoir using the excess energy in the grid. This stored water in the form of gravitational potential energy is then released when prevailing demand exceeds currently connected generation and it flows through a turbine (kinetic energy) and generates power. The energy consumed to pump water to the upper reservoir is higher than generated by the water flow through the turbine to the lower reservoir. But this negative net energy consumption is offset by the cost savings achieved compared to the cost of energy if sourced from a peaking generator.

In the case of a solar pumped hydroelectric storage system, the solar PV array is connected to the grid and the excess generated power is used to pump the water from the lower to upper reservoir. The same applies to wind generator systems (see Figure 1).

The potential energy stored in the water can be calculated using the formula: W = pVgH Where: • W = energy (J) • V = Volume of water (m3) • g = acceleration due to gravity (m/s2) • h=head, height from which water is released (m) These systems are usually constructed in geographical sites where there are two natural reservoirs that are separated by an elevation greater than 300m or where there is a small mountain near a water resource enabling excavation of the upper reservoir/dam wall construction.

They can also be built near the ocean where the sea-water can be pumped up to a natural or an artificial reservoir in a higher ground level like the Okinawa Yanbaru Plant in Japan (although decommissioned in 2016 due to inaccurate demand forecast and not being profitable as a business).

The plant in Figure 2 has been an inspiration to the development of a large-scale 300 MW solar pumped

“Pumped hydro-electric storage is a mature and established concept of energy storage as it has been in operation since the 1890s [and] is the largest available grid storage system in the world.” hydro storage system on the coast of Atacama Desert in Chile. This region has all the advantages of natural dried up lakes on hilly areas at the coast which would form the upper reservoir combined with high levels of solar radiation, making it an ideal site for a solar and pumpedhydroelectric plant. It is expected to be up and running by 2020.

Barriers to this technology Identification of a geographically suitable location for Figure 2: Okinawa Yanbaru Seawater Pumped Storage Power Station the installation of this system is the main challenge.

Other challenges include the potential relocation of nearby communities to a safe location, alteration of scale battery storage solution for South Australia after the recent load the ecology in the existing river system or stored energy losses due to shedding event. evaporation. All project barriers require attention before committing the There is no doubt that batteries will play a major role in the transition project. of the energy sector from traditional power generation to renewable Australia currently has three successfully running pumped hydro energy technologies. But there is also the question of operational lifetime, stations: Tumut 3 (0.6 GW) and Shoalhaven (0.24 GW) in New South power performance, charging capabilities, safety and system capital cost Wales, and Wivenhoe (0.5 GW) in Queensland. Realising the advantages which make large-scale battery storage questionable for installation when of this technology relative to other storage systems, Australian National compared to pumped hydro storage. The main advantages of battery University (ANU) has undertaken a mapping project to identify potential systems are rapid and distributed deployment compared to lengthy civil sites to install short-term off-river pumped hydro storage systems. These works and approval processes. Ultimately, the best solution is probably a sites are dams or reservoirs that are elevated at a height of about 300 to good mix of technologies.

600 metres from each other.

Pumped hydro storage is an established technology that has been in The most recent project approved for development is the ‘Kidston operation for over a century, the initial capital cost is very high (mainly due Pumped Storage Hydropower Project’ by Genex Power, where the old to the civil works of dams or reservoirs), it has higher overall efficiency of Kidston gold mine in northern Queensland will be converted into a around 76 per cent to 85 per cent and a very long lifespan of more than 330 MWh pumped hydro storage system alongside a 150 MW solar PV 60 years. But still, a pumped hydro storage system has the lowest energy array system to help smooth out the availability of electricity generated density when compared to other systems. Also, building a pumped hydro by the solar PV array. This is an interesting prospect as Australia has storage system is a lengthy and complex process sometimes taking up to thousands of disused mines and whilst not all may be suitable, the lower 10 years including permits for constructing dams and reservoirs. reservoir is already available (see Figure 3).

Pumped Hydro storage and batteries Batteries have kindled excitement among people recently, especially after a certain billionaire tech entrepreneur’s involvement in a large-

Figure 3: Kidston Pumped Storage Hydropower Project

32 SPRING 2017

Conclusion

Due to technology feasibility and efficiency compared to other options like batteries, pumped hydro storage is an economic solution that seems to pose a lower investment risk when compared to any other storage system. Solar pumped hydro storage can also be integrated with battery storage, where the solar generated power can be used to pump water and the excess can again be stored in a battery storage system which could provide very rapid demand response. It will incorporate inverter conversion losses to and from battery, but is feasible. The variable costs of a pumped hydro plant has to be taken into account and compared with the forecasted battery costs, before economic viabilities of these projects are penned down. Critical to the deployment of pumped hydro are policies and long term plans and strategies, as it is not an overnight solution.

This article reproduced with permission from GSES. It first appeared on their website www.gses.com.au

Island power French Island in Victoria’s south is without connection to land or to mains power but the close community is thriving thanks to renewables technology. Amanda Lenihan of Selectronic Australia braved the rough ferry crossing to take a tour of the island and its diverse group of residents who rely on solar and storage systems to lead productive lives.

“These people may live in relative isolation but there is a real sense of community.”

34 SPRING 2017

FRENCH ISLAND is Victoria’s largest coastal island, but with no bridge link to the mainland it remains a mystery to most people. The island is two-thirds National Park but is also home to 119 permanent residents all living off the grid. A chance conversation with Trevor Robotham, a longtime Selectronic Accredited Integrator, sparked the realisation that French Island is a working case study of Selectronic’s product history.

When Trevor invited me to visit ‘Selectronic Island’ I had no idea where he was talking about. It turns out that 80 per cent of the hundred or so dwellings on the island are powered by renewable energy and Trevor estimates that 80 per cent of those renewable energy systems are managed by a Selectronic multi-mode inverter. A delve into our warranty data revealed the first registered product on the island was a 200 watt square wave inverter back in 1992.

The latest system to be registered was an SP PRO 482 matched with an Ecoult battery bank.

French Island is a microcosm of the variety you find in off-grid systems all over Australia. The island features stunning Grand Designs-worthy homes as well as humble farmhouses still going strong with fifteen-year-old inverters and batteries housed in bird-poo encrusted enclosures.

Trevor is the owner of Sun Wind and Power (SWAP) and has been installing on French Island for nearly fifteen years. He’s now considered a local.

Trevor estimates that 90 per cent of his work is on the island and is so busy that he spends three nights there most weeks.

Free range goats When asked what brought Michael Garwood to the island 12 months ago, his answer was an

emphatic “No foxes”. Michael has the only herd of Nigerian dwarf goats in Australia. Trevor and I were kept entertained watching them gambol around while Michael reeled off all the names of the 24 goats in his herd.

Trevor’s first installation on the island was for the original owners of Michael’s farm.

He recently upgraded the inverter from a SA 21 to a reconditioned SA 32. The flooded lead acid batteries are still hanging in there – just. Trevor is about to add more panels and replace the wind turbine; a bolt sheared in strong winds a couple of months ago and the prop flew about 100 metres landing a few paddocks over.

When asked how he finds living off-grid Michael’s response was “Batteries – you have to check them!” He’s had to learn how to live off-grid and it was a comment echoed by many people I met that day.

Budgets and barges Another person who has learnt to pay attention is Ken Brown. Ken and Helen bought their property 20 years ago but it took him “a long time to find a way to build a house without costing an arm and a leg”. In the end they settled on a modular home which was pre-fabricated in Wonthaggi and transported over in pieces on the barge from Corinella.

Like many people I visited, Ken put on a Selectronic unit and a wind turbine when he first started camping on his property and then upgraded to an SP PRO Series II before the house arrived. His current system is DC coupled with a Outback MPPT charge controller and a bank of flooded lead acid batteries.

While I was chatting with Ken, Trevor realised that the firmware on Ken’s SP PRO was out of date so he used his laptop to download the latest version of firmware to ensure that Ken always has the most recent features available.

French Island has no mains power supply, no town water or local government but better mobile and 4G data coverage than I have at my home in the Dandenong Ranges!

It’s not only private property that requires power. The local primary school, community hall, cricket pavilion, CFA station and Park Victoria depot all have Selectronic inverters.

Community hub Morning tea at the French Island General Store (FIGS) provided an opportunity to speak with Tanya Hughes whose family took over the business just over a year ago. It’s the only shop on the island and incorporates a café, grocer, post office, newsagency, bottle shop, elgas depot, self-contained B&B and bike hire. When they took over they were running the generator 24 hours a day.

A new set of batteries and solar panels were added to the existing SP PRO and wind turbine. Tanya is thrilled with their upgraded system and is using the $15,000 annual savings in diesel fuel to add a much needed petrol and diesel pump. Currently the residents have to make do with a monthly visit by a fuel truck on the barge.

Fishing for funds The best story of how he ended up on French Island belongs to Phil Bock. As he tells it, “I was living on Phillip Island and I went to my bank manager and said will you lend me some money for a boat? He said ‘I’ll lend you the money if you take me fishing.’ Got the money, got the boat so we went fishing and a big storm came in. Nearest bit of land was French Island. Prior to that I always thought it was just National Park over here so I didn’t realise you could actually live here.

“We were stuck ‘cos we pulled up to a beach then the tide went out and we were stuck high and dry for the day. And I realised how awesome it was . . . I went on realestate.com and found this place.”

Phil’s now the manager of the French Island Eco Inn and is also the island’s real estate agent. The Eco Inn is powered with a DC coupled solar array and wind turbine managed by an SP PRO. Trevor and Phil are planning on beefing up the system with some AC-coupled east facing panels to support the morning loads directly.

Mike was aware of Selectronic, and consciously chose to keep using the Australian product when an upgrade was needed to service the new loads.

“You guys are rock solid,” was his comment. The current system includes an SP PRO 482, two parallel battery banks of 600Ah each, 6 kW solar, a wind turbine and a 20 kVa generator. Overall the system supports two houses, two cottages and a workshop full of machinery.

Mike is an industrial designer who thrives on a challenge. “The island can be too much of a challenge sometimes but overall it meets the criteria and there’s a nice bunch of people here too,” he said. It’s a theme that is echoed by all the residents I speak to. These people may live in relative isolation but there is a real sense of community.

Bright outlook My final stop for the day was at French Island Glamping with its stunning water views and immaculate and luxurious bell tent. Pete has a small solar array, an SP PRO series I, a second-hand set of flooded batteries and a back-up generator to power his own home and the glamping set up. People obviously appreciate the serenity – they are fully booked most weekends of the year.

Everywhere we went on the island Trevor pointed out other Selectronic systems he’d done or systems that were about to go in. These included on a planned wedding reception centre, a native animal zoo and various new holiday homes.

Trevor had shown me that Selectronic is allowing people to live a life of their own choosing.

His advice is “It’s proper design and installation of quality products that leads to reliability. We have that here on Selectronic – I mean French – Island.” www.selectronic.com.au

Truly grand A highlight of my day was a tour of Mike and Debbie Gearon’s newly completed home which will feature on Grand Designs Australia later in the year. Mike gave me a whirlwind tour of this majestic multi-million dollar home filled with quirky sustainable elements. There is no airconditioning but the home is constructed entirely from stone and the underfloor hydronic heating is provided by the huge circular fireplace – no computers in sight.

In fact Mike’s renewable energy system is monitored by ARVIO’s E-Max software but he’s not interested. “I don’t bother monitoring from the house. I just trust the system to do its thing. And it does.” (Trevor does the monitoring.) Mike plans on upgrading the hydronic heating by connecting a few heating elements that will be powered by the wind turbine so that if there is no fire going the home doesn’t become too cold.

“I don’t bother monitoring from the house. I just trust the system to do its thing. And it does.”

Solar & Storage 35

STORAGE NEWS and PRODUCT UPDATES MORE BIG NEWS FOR BIG STORAGE: A new large-scale 30 MW, 8 MWh battery is being developed at the Dalrymple substation on the Yorke Peninsula west of Adelaide.

The project, part funded by ARENA to the tune of $12 million, is designed to demonstrate how energy storage can strengthen South Australia’s grid and potentially lower energy prices and is the first large-scale grid-connected battery to be designed, built and commercially operated in Australia largely with private investment from energy providers.

The battery is the second phase of the Energy Storage for Commercial Renewable Integration (ESCRI) project and is expected to cost around $30 million and be operational as soon as February 2018.

ARENA HAS ALSO PLEDGED $28.5 million in combined grant funding for the energy storage microgrid project at the HMAS Stirling naval base at Garden Island, 61 kilometres south of Perth. Carnegie is developing a 2 MW solar PV and 2 MW/0.5 MWh energy storage microgrid that will become the world’s first wave energy integrated microgrid and desalination facility.

NEXT WE TURN TO JAPAN where TrinaBESS has partnered with Smart Solar to supply 20,000 sets of residential Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESSs) from 2018 to 2021. Frank Qi, general manager of Chinese based TrinaBESS considers Japan as a primary market for BESS development and last year established its Japanese subsidiary in Tokyo as part of a long-term strategy to establish firm foundation and growth.

IN the first half of 2017 TrinaBESS achieved more than 1000 sets of TrinaHome shipments, and now anticipates to gain a 5 per cent share of the global residential BESS market during 2017.

A JOINT UNSW-UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND project in conjunction with battery energy storage firm Printed Energy plans to bring Ultra-thin, flexible screen-printed batteries for cheap portable devices and intermittent renewable energy to market. Printed Energy’s solid state batteries are described as a thin, flexible format printed in a roll-to-roll process like a newspaper that can be adapted to almost any shape, with potential to power large-scale solar panels and energy storage to disposable medical devices, smart cards and wearable electronics.

The Dean of Engineering at UNSW says the technology also has immediate applications in wearables and smallscale devices.

“To thrive in business, you have to tell your story” Dennis Rutzou has been in the PR business for more than 40 years working for a wide range of clients, many of which are in renewables.

He says every business has a unique story to tell, either about their product, their unique personality or something special about their approach. But it is the telling of that story that can be the difference between success or failure, profit or loss.

The question is, how do you tell that story to those that are important to the future whether they are consumers, investors, distributors or employees? Especially in the crowded world of renewables, where new developments are commonplace, but where headlines can propel a new discovery forward in a way that can’t be achieved by other means of communication.

That is where ‘wordsmith’ Dennis can step in and guide.

If you want help spreading the word about your business, call Dennis on 0411 510 888 or email dennisr@drpr.com.au

36 SPRING 2017

IN ANOTHER LANDMARK DEVELOPMENT MPower is building its largest energy storage project to date: a 5.6 MWh battery Energy Storage System in the Cook Islands capital of Rarotonga.

Closer to home is MPower’s launch of a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) business growth opportunity to the market in conjunction with Jemena Asset Management Holdings, designed to assist solar installers to grow their business to commercial customers.

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Energy Storage Steam Accumulation “There’s life in the old dog yet – and more than you might think” Energy storage consultant David Oakland believes steam accumulation is sometimes overlooked as an option in the utility scale energy storage mix.

ENERGY STORAGE for power generation and grid resilience has undergone significant development since the beginning of this century. Establishing a low carbon electricity grid requires the disparity between electricity demand and power supply generated from burning fossil fuel or the harnessing of renewable energy sources to be managed.

To this end there already exists grid-scale direct electrical (battery), indirect thermal (molten salt) and mechanical (flywheel) storage technologies deployed commercially and the available choices in the future will undoubtedly expand as a result of fervent R & D in this field. It is only a matter of time before other technologies such as compressed air and liquid air storage, and hydrogen storage technologies are of sufficiently developed and comparable commercial size to join the list.

Power imbalance “The term ‘steam accumulator’ is a misnomer and a more apt description would be ‘heat accumulator’”

38 SPRING 2017

Efficient electrical power production from fossilfuelled and concentrated solar power (CSP) plant which involves raising steam to drive a turbogenerator suffers from an imbalance between supply and demand and in the case of CSP power output cannot be maintained during periods of cloud cover and through the hours of darkness without some form of energy storage. In the case of new-build projects, conventionally fuelled or solar, this can impact detrimentally on economic justification and investment decisions.

Following ratification in 2016 of the Paris agreement on climate change, Governments among the signatory countries are starting to impose legislative requirements on power producers to ensure stipulated amounts of energy storage are available within given time-frames. Energy storage can balance intermittency to overcome the economic and operational problems of operating power plant.

Steam accumulation Various electrical and thermal technologies are available. Of the latter, one already long established energy storage solution that is often overlooked is ‘steam accumulation’. Steam accumulation can provide large-scale indirect storage of electrical power by accumulating excess steam produced by the steam generator for later release to drive the turbine.

Industrial size accumulators can be very large but there is no practical limit to size, storage capacity or operating pressure of the storage vessels to balance demand variations or maintain electrical power output at the levels required.

The potential benefits of steam accumulation by comparison with other energy storage technologies could be lower capital, operational and maintenance costs, and longevity of equipment. For instance, the storage vessel (or vessels) would be usually designed for a minimum 20-year lifespan, in practice longer depending upon operational conditions and with little or no maintenance required.

Storage in action The early development of large storage installations for power generation began at Berlin-Charlottenburg power station in the early 1900s where 5,000m3 of steam storage volume was installed to provide 600 tonnes of steam for peak load power generation.

The latest large saturated water storage plant recently built and now operational is the 50MW ‘Khi ‘Solar One’ CSP plant situated in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. The steam storage system can supply up to two hours of thermal energy back to the power plant to maintain full output of clean energy to 45,000 households.

The term ‘steam accumulator’ is a misnomer and a more apt description would be ‘heat accumulator’. This is because water (not steam vapour) is used as the storage medium in the storage vessel. The reason becomes evident when the greater heat storage capacity of water is compared with that of steam vapour by volume at any given state of temperature and pressure. Most accumulators work on the ‘pressure drop’ or ‘sliding pressure’ principle whereby steam from the generator is charged at high pressure into the water – thus raising its temperature (and pressure), and the steam for power production is discharged from the water as ‘flash’ at low pressure under demand.

accumulator to provide (1) industrial energy storage or (2) utility energy storage. The correct design in terms of the required storage capacity and charge/discharge functions is important for both types but in the case of (1) equally careful attention must be given to incorporating the steam accumulator into the steam supply system in such a way as to optimise, possibly maximise by means of suitable control, the efficient use of energy in the boiler house whilst at the same time securing the needs of production and safeguarding, even improving, product quality.

In the case of (2) the stored energy is basically required to make available a supply of supplementary steam to the power generation plant to balance intermittency and if necessary to take over completely (for a finite period) the steam supply to the power generator during periods of interruption to the energy supply as (for example) in the case of solar power generation plant.

Adaptability The use of steam accumulation as an effective grid-scale energy storage solution can fit equally with new build or retrofit applications for solar and fossil fuel fired turbo-generator power plant alike. The commercial and economic arguments for the choice of steam accumulation in

Widespread use of steam

the power generation storage mix have to be made in each individual

Steam accumulation is not limited to power generation applications, indeed its widespread use in industries that are reliant on steam for its manufacturing processes extends back through the 20th century and its relevance today is still just as important. However, there is an important distinction to be made between the purpose of a steam

investigation of the potential for this proven technology.

case but technological viability need not be seen as a barrier to further

David Oakland is principal consultant at UK based David Oakland Associates, a specialist ‘steam accumulation’ design provider, email: enquiry@steamacc.co.uk, www.steamacc.co.uk

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The outlook for electric vehicles FORECASTS FOR THE SIZE of the electric fleet in future years continue to roll in. ClimateWorks recently researched the market and found international evidence suggests a strong correlation between cumulative electric vehicle sales and the number of vehicle models being offered.

Globally, the number of electric vehicles sold each year is growing rapidly, with a 40 per cent increase from 2015 to 2016, to reach sales volumes of more than 750,000 in 2016. Today there are more than two million electric vehicles on the roads across the world.

In contrast, Australian electric vehicle sales fell 23 per cent from 2015 to 2016, and the decline is believed to be linked in part to the limited number of lower priced models available in 2016. Although an anticipated improvement in the number of lower cost models available is likely to increase sales, purchase cost and the distance that can be travelled on a battery charge remain key concerns.

Strong government policy on electric vehicles can address some of the barriers to uptake, writes ClimateWorks, and in Australia, the adoption of light vehicle carbon emission standards could provide an overarching incentive to support electric vehicle uptake, provide a signal to industry to support greater investment, and could help to lower electric vehicle costs over time.

This policy is currently being considered by the Commonwealth Government, but governments across all jurisdictions also have the opportunity to support electric vehicle uptake through the incorporation of electric vehicles into government fleets, and through support for the installation of a charging network, the report states.

A round up of forecasts for the Australian electric light vehicles/passenger market: • • • • • •

20% of fleet by 2035 45% of fleet by 2030 100% of fleet by 2030 15% of purchases by 2030 6.5% to 27% of purchases by 2025 16 to 45% of purchases by 2036

Global projections for EV uptake: • 10% of fleet by 2030 • 25% of fleet by 2040

ENA/CSIRO ClimateWorks/ANU Beyond Zero DEE AEMO AEMO

IEA Bloomberg

Moving targets New European emissions legislation in Europe are driving car markers to increase their targets for EV production and both Britain and France have declared their intent to cease selling petrol and diesel cars by 2040. India has set a timeline of 2030 which is five years behind that of Norway’s 2025.

Turning now to some of the vehicle manufactures EV targets: • Volvo plans to phase out internal combustion cars by 2019 and to develop an “affordable EV” the following year.

• Tesla* has pledged to build one million EVs by 2020, the same year that • Nissan predicts EVs will account for 20 per cent of sales in Europe and Ford reckons one fifth of the Chinese market will be EVs. *Progress is not as speedy as anticipated … Tesla only recently delivered its more affordable Model 3 to its first 30 customers. The vehicle comes with a price tag of $US35,000 ($44,000) and starting range of 350 kilometres and has already attracted 500,000 buyers around the world who have each parted with $US1,000 ($1,250) to reserve the model, but Elon Musk concedes it will be difficult to deliver all 500,000 cars next year. Most will be unlikely to park it in their driveway until late 2018, and Australians have to wait until 2019 when the right-hand drive versions hit the road.

Fast-forward to 2025 when Volkswagen has an ambition to reach one million EV sales, and Mercedes suggests EVs will comprise a quarter of its global sales.

Mining boom This begs the questions that given most EVs are powered by lithium-ion batteries, where will the necessary raw product be sourced? The answer is close to home, with Western Australia supplying significant quantities of the lithium used in global battery manufacture and now experiencing rapid mining investment.

Based on car makers’ ambitions to transition to elective vehicles about 600,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate per annum will be required by 2025.

Industry insiders are however concerned that more lithium is discharged to waste around the world than enters into the process supply chain.

Presently about 8,000 tonnes a year of battery materials end up in landfill and it is estimated just 800 tonnes is recycled, highlighting the urgent need for Australia to develop recycling facilities for waste battery materials.

40 SPRING 2017

Friends of White Cliffs RETIRED TELECOMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST and budding grey nomad Graeme Hanigan attended the White Cliffs Music Festival earlier this year and while in the area took a side tour of the Solar Thermal Power Station built by an ANU team back in 1981.

Turned out to be a bit of an eye opener, he says.

“Here is a site which is possibly the Solar Age equivalent of Stephenson’s Rocket, gathering dust and slowly left to decay,” Graeme told Solar & Storage. “It has the recognition of a Historic Engineering Marker, more than enough justification for preservation; it is of national if not international significance.”

With support of the Central Darling Shire and the locals in White Cliffs, Graeme has taken on the project of site preservation, and to garner wider community interest created the ‘Friends of the White Cliffs Solar, Thermal Power Station’ as a Facebook Group. https://m.facebook.com/groups/615320325342238 He hopes to gain the support of a pool of technically qualified people but will settle for enthusiastic volunteers, noting White Cliffs has a very small and transient population.

Graeme has secured a copy of the 2013 PowerHouse conservator’s report which provides several starting points for the task of preservation, and he expects the work could be completed within a number of months pending sufficient volunteers and funding.

Once the initial preservation is completed, the Solar Power Station and Community Museum could become a viable tourist attraction which the Central Darling Shire and White Cliffs community can build on, Graeme says. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Cliffs_Solar_Power_Station

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Smart Energy Solutions Look no further… the who, what and where of training tailored by and for the industry.

Who The Australian Solar Council and Energy Storage Council are proud to announce the launch of the Smart Energy Training Centre (SETC).

Leading industry training providers Solar Training Centre, Future Skills and SolarQuip will be delivering nationally recognised accredited courses and a range of professional development and certificate courses under the SETC banner.

SETC’s premium and training providers are not only specialists in the sector but also passionate about solar and energy storage.

What Sustainability and smart energy: All solar and energy storage segments will be covered in the

When Accredited courses kicked off in late August in South Australia and Queensland along with a National Road Show series. A range of courses is available in Adelaide, Melbourne, Healesville (east of Melbourne) and Sydney.

Students can now view the courses and enquire online at smartenergytc.org.au

training: system design, installation, maintenance, auditing and assessment, health and safety in grid connect and off-grid, domestic, commercial and industrial applications.

Hands-on training: Students will have access to the best resourced and purpose designed training facilities.

Where Once at full-capacity regular training courses will be

“The launch of the Smart Energy Training Centre could not be more timely, given the unprecedented demand for solar and storage systems installed by skilled, knowledgeable staff who, above all, are confident they are doing the best job with the best tools.

A high degree of professionalism is vital to the growth as well as the reputation of the industry.”

JOHN GRIMES

42 SPRING 2017

staged at venues in all states, for the convenience of participants.

On launch these include Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and Healesville. SETC is also looking to finalise venues for Canberra, Perth and Hobart.

Face-to-face delivery for practicals and online courses will also be offered, enabling those located further afield to take advantage of the SETC’s premium training program.

Why The SETC aims to support a sustainable sector and promote growth and high standards by committing to continuous professional development, best practice and quality improvement.

The development of SETC is in response to the clear need for premium training resources in an industry that is both sophisticated and complex. This at a time of unprecedented demand among homeowners for solar systems and energy storage/batteries.

Australia’s solar sector is growing rapidly: in 2016 there were approximately 9,900 direct and indirect jobs. Under a low growth scenario the industry could accommodate 20,000 jobs by 2020. Projections under medium growth put employment levels at around 30,000 by 2020 – more than treble that of 2016 – and high growth at 35,500. www.solar.org.au/training/ www.smartenergytc.org.au

2018 Smart Energy Conference and Exhibition Australia’s largest solar, storage and smart energy conference and exhibition.

This time it’s in sunny Sydney! At the International Convention Centre April 10 and 11, 2018

SMART ENERGY IS SET TO SHINE as the solar industry continues its stellar trajectory with a record number of PV and storage installations as well as large scale projects during the past 12 months.

Come along and hear what’s in store for the rest of 2018 and beyond, with more coal-fired powered stations being replaced with clean energy systems and distributed energy. Industry analysts, politicians, bureaucrats, innovators, investors, manufacturers, trainers across the three conference streams will deliver expert analysis and opinion and showcase the latest technologies with a strong emphasis on storage and batteries, energy efficiency and the sustainable and built environment.

Smart Energy in all its forms is brought to you at no charge. This is a FREE to attend event!

Make a diary note now: Tuesday 10 and Wednesday 11 April 2018 On behalf of the Australian Solar Council, the ‘Voice of Solar’ we look forward to seeing you at your solar event, the Smart Energy Exhibition and Conference.

> Solar, Storage and Smart Energy and the inaugural Energy Storage Council conference

> Policy and markets – key drivers and detractors

> Professional Development – the most up-to-date and comprehensive information and training session … this stream will be supercharged on the back of the recently launched Smart Energy Training Centre

Sydney’s glittering new venue Set within a dynamic dining, leisure and residential precinct, the newly refurbished multi-million dollar ICC Sydney features a striking contemporary design, industry leading technology and flexible multipurpose spaces.

ICC Sydney is at the heart of its very own Sydney Harbour waterfront precinct, set among restaurants, retail and a vibrant public domain on Darling Harbour yet only a moment’s walk to Australia’s largest CBD and surrounding university and cultural quarters.

The venue adjoins a new 600room luxury hotel, a new residential and commercial development and a new pedestrian boulevard that connects the waterfront back to Central Station and city laneways.

The Smart Energy event also presents the perfect opportunity to network with like-minded specialists across the entire solar spectrum.

But that is just the start! A hall full of local and global exhibitors will showcase their products and services to the thousands of delegates expected at Smart Energy 2018.

The successful 2017 event attracted well over 4,400 delegates from several countries who viewed the more than 60 exhibitors and had the opportunity to listen to the 120 conference presenters.

In 2018 we will take the event to the next level.

Incorporating energy storage and solar hot water, low energy lighting and building products, we expect a big increase in delegate numbers and range of exhibits.

Exhibitors please note Don’t pass up this prime marketing opportunity to profile your organisation through exhibition or sponsorship at what will be the solar event of 2018.

Exhibition spaces are filling fast with more than 50 per cent of spaces already sold.

Sales are faster than the previous year and exhibitors very supportive of the move to Sydney.

Sponsorships are almost sold out, contact Brett Thompson on 0402 181 250 to secure Platinum or Gold sponsorship and place your brand at the forefront of up to 5000 people, each with a stake in smart energy. *** Support the Industry body that supports you.

All proceeds fund our work on behalf of the industry ***

Solar & Storage 43

MEMBER PROFILE

Solar cycle Founder of 360Energy Michael Anthony has a clearly stated vision: To provide affordable, knowledgeable, responsible, shareable power.

We asked him to lend insight into the foundations on which his business success has been built.

360Energy encompasses the full spectrum of solar and storage installations from residential to large-scale … how do you determine which are the best battery, module, inverter technology systems and brands to use?

We start with the outcome we want to achieve for the customer, how much energy they need to generate and store and what amount of power needs to be delivered in what time.

This forms the basis for any product selection whether that be a major industrial application, a community or a home or business. In the energy storage sector we initially integrated our own products which we launched under the 360storage brand, in 2015 these products represented about 45 per cent of the marketplace. Today we work with companies like Tesla, BYD, SMA, LG and Risen who help us provide engineered solutions to our customers with confidence.

What’s the toughest aspect you have had to confront while building your company?

Supply of capital has been the biggest challenge over the past seven years, but it’s changing now. Financial institutions are understanding the cost benefits of renewable technology, investors are wanting to see their capital in projects and investments that support the energy transition, also for those companies that have developed a sound reputation and team, there is appreciation and respect from outside the sector.

“Supply of capital has been the biggest challenge over the past seven years, but it’s changing now.

Financial institutions are understanding the cost benefits of renewable technology.”

44 SPRING 2017

How have you managed to source technical expertise to cope with the booming demand for solar energy systems?

We have trained about 175 installers and 360 Energy associated staff in our applications over the past few years, which is quite possibly the largest trained workforce in solar and storage in the country. As an industry [collective] we need to be ready to train many more, and do so in a way that engenders quality workmanship and customer experience. I call on industry leaders like John Grimes, chief executive of the Energy Storage Council to form alliances with training organisations, who can scale education programs and importantly ensure they have the required regulatory support to help us get the appropriately trained and certified workforce we need.

All-round success for Michael Anthony of 360Energy

(S&S: Good news Michael – your wish is granted, see page 42 detailing the launch of the Smart Energy Training Centre, SETC.) 360Energy has been involved in more than 200,000 installations. Have any customers been particularly notable?

My favourite story is about Jan who is the mother of one of our top executives, her other son works for one of the big energy companies.

Jan’s retired and was really concerned about her future expenses getting out of control – I’m sure both her boys were educating her – so we installed a 360Energy Powerwall 1 system on her house and connected it up to a 3 KW solar system. She is now using 90 per cent of the energy she generates herself and the graph on her energy bill has dropped off a ledge! She sold her shares in the energy company her son works for and would love to buy shares in ours.

The best bit is she can’t stop telling everyone about ‘buying her own power station’ because it has given her confidence over her ability to manage future costs, and I think that’s great.

Since its inception in 2010, Solar360 Pty Ltd has grown into the 360Energy group offering specialist services My Community Energy, 360Storage, Projects360 and retail brand 360Energy, in the residential, community, commercial and industrial sectors and deploying some of the most recognisable renewable energy brands. www.360energy.com.au

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MEMBER PROFILE

Ceramet sets the stage Ceramet Solar is positioned to carve a presence in the renewable energy industry with the launch of its Australian designed and made solar trackers and solar carports.

AT LONG LAST utility scale solar plants are on the ascent in Australia, driven by progressive state governments and companies committed to clean energy. And in many cases PV using single axis trackers are being specified in new builds as the trackers potentially boost energy generation by around 20 per cent compared to fixed PV, according to Simon Maan of Ceramet Solar.

Victorian based Ceramet Solar is already gearing up a slice of the action and currently finalising the design and costs of its Australian designed and made single axis tracker that comes with a self-powered motor on each row to track the sun from just 15 degrees off the horizon.

“Our understanding is that local content will

The product development company is currently building the prototype unit at its solar facility in Bridgewater, the site previously

Target markets The primary target market of the trackers is the domestic utility scale PV industry and Maan is mindful of the Victorian Government’s 650 MW of reverse auction.

“Our understanding is that local content will be a selection criteria for successful projects and as such we believe there is significant potential for those projects to be supplied with Australian designed and made product,” he said.

Most of the components are sourced locally however gearboxes and motors are supplied from overseas due to the lack of Australian manufacturers.

Asked about the optimum system Maan suggested single axis tracking probably offers the best balance between energy harvest and overall lifecycle cost; dual axis systems are more costly to install and the two axes of movement

be a selection criteria

owned and operated by Solar Systems, and

make for greater complexities.

for successful [local]

setting up a full manufacturing and fabrication facility on that same site, explained Maan

projects and as such

who as Engineering Manager steers technical

Modular PV carport

developments and specifications. “The plan is to

In other developments Ceramet Solar has built

we believe there is

start with three 84-metre rows and then grow

an EV charger-meets carport designed to cover

significant potential

the installation to approximately 1 MW.”

a minimum eight cars but with its modular

for those projects

trackers are another innovative product of

to be supplied with

sophisticated trackers follow the sun from

increase in the uptake of electric vehicles, says

Australian designed

sunrise to sunset to reap maximum daily energy

Maan, “And re-charging (rather than battery

and made product.”

harvest and come with a wind stow limit of

replacement) appears to be the way that re-

20m/s.

fueling these vehicles will go.”

The EV carport

46 SPRING 2017

The vision does not end there, dual axis the Ceramet Solar design team. These more

design can be extended to accommodate several more.

The carports will cater for the projected

CAD renderings of the selfpowered ultra low maintenance and snap assembly single axis tracker The carport is typically fitted with Australian made Tindo PV panels and Enphase micro inverters, but can be supplied as a DC system with any framed PV panel and string inverter. Alternatively customers can purchase the structure and supply their chosen panels and electrical install.

Importantly, the inbuilt car chargers enable owners of the structures to generate revenue from both the feed in tariff and EV drivers paying for the recharge.

Generally the carports will generate 3 kW per vehicle space and as Maan explained the charging of cars can consume more than 20 kW at any one time, so the carport needs to be connected to the grid.

“Given the time it takes to re-charge the batteries we believe there is a market for the EV carport at highway rest stops, community information centres and shopping centres where shade sails would typically be deployed,” Maan told Solar & Storage. “And due to their striking visual appeal many companies would benefit from having these as a show piece in their front yard.”

Big brands with multiple outlets such as McDonalds stores will also be targeted.

Ceramet Solar is currently working with Melbourne Market to install a demonstration at their offices in Epping. The export market is not out of the question, however Ceramet is keen to first grow its presence locally.

Meet the crew from Ceramet Solar at All Energy where they will be exhibiting at stand 3706 www.cerametsolar.com.au

MEMBER PROFILE

Instyle and ontrend Queensland based installer Karl Brown of Instyle Solar keeps his team of 50 busy, at last count they had helped more than 3500 Australian households switch to solar energy.

Here Karl discusses industry trends and his business model that’s proving a hit.

System size: Up until 12 months ago 6 kW was a large residential solar system with the odd request for one at 10 kW, now we install around five 10 kW systems per week just in south east Queensland, as well as the odd 12-15 kW system, and occasionally one at 20 kW. Now that [energy retailers] Energex and Ergon better understand customer demand and requirements we are going to see a greater trend toward larger systems over the next couple of years.

Securing a steady flow of customers: We work differently to most solar companies, we have a 36-seat call centre and develop our own interest.

The upside of this method is that our sales don’t fluctuate much due to seasonal demand and retail fluctuations, which has allowed Instyle Solar as a business to fly under the radar for a long time.

However this will change a lot over the next 12 months as we develop and execute our inbound strategies which will help facilitate our growth into other markets around Australia.

“Today’s customers are

Today’s customers: are better informed about the benefits of solar, this is exactly why prices are constantly being driven down and why so

better informed

many solar companies are closing their doors. We

about the benefits

compared to that of three to five years ago, this

are now dealing with quite an educated market

of solar... We are

makes winning jobs much harder and because it’s

now dealing with

to win more work is to drop prices. With margins

harder many in the industry believe the only way

quite an educated

eroding, the customer wins in the short term until

market compared

and do the same thing again – it’s a major problem

to that of three to five years ago.”

the companies close and reappear as another entity with the industry. At Instyle Solar we operate differently by focussing on customer education as our number one priority and then we provide quality products at a fair price, this mix has been working very well for our business.

Average payback: Our goal at Instyle Solar is to install a solar system that will pay itself off within a three to five year period, this has not changed too much over the years, however the makeup of systems offered for this has changed. Four years ago the goal when selling a system was to eliminate daily consumption and offset as much night use as possible, this was when we had a higher feed in tariff. But then the FIT dropped and in order to provide a three to five year return on investment we had to focus on consumption, which meant smaller systems initially but ready for expansion. Now we seem to be back to the old days with the feed-in tariff increasing to 16 cents kWh in south east Queensland we are now sizing for consumption and offsetting as much night use as possible.

48 SPRING 2017

Instyle Solar installed this solar system seen at a waterfront seafood restaurant near Moreton Bay just north of Brisbane Storage: We have only completed about 30 retrofits, at the moment about one in every 15-20 systems sold has a storage solution attached, however the increase in feed-in tariff has seen the numbers drop a fair bit since July 1 this year.

Partnerships: Instyle Solar has partnered with panel makers GCL and REC, and inverters Fronius and Enphase.

Products: To date we have installed around 200 battery systems, the majority being LG Chem with some GCL, Enphase, sonnen and Tesla. The Tesla brand is doing to the storage market what Apple did to the mp3 (iPod), tablet (iPad) and mobile phone markets (iPhone). Many people want Tesla storage however limited supply restricts our ability to deliver.

Draft Australian Standards: We presented a submission to help thwart stringent controls over residential battery positioning and so far so good.

Energy Storage Council vice president Glen Morris was very active on all forms of social media making sure every time a battery or storage solution was mentioned that he got the message out, he’s very passionate about the industry. www.instylesolar.com.au

TO BE A WINNER YOUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;VE GOT TO PERFORM! Instyle Solar now proudly a premium partner to the most awarded solar brand in the industry

instylesolar.com.au or Call 1300 133 556

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Technology for efficiency ENDOKS HAS BEEN AROUND for 15 years and completed 50 projects.

But if the name is not familiar that’s because head office is in Ankara, Turkey and until now the sole branch office was in India.

But expansion is on the cards and the company has set its sights on Australia’s renewables market and established T4E – Technology for Efficiency – with offices in Brisbane.

Marketing Manager Gokcen Yilmaz explained the parent company specialises in monitoring, analytics and control of renewable plants and implementation of smart grids in the Middle East and Europe where they take care of 18 clients’ distribution grids with a total of 75 solar and wind plants generating more than 500 MW. The Endoks DMSDistribution Management System and OMS-Outage Management System has more than 10,000 data collection points with real-time/ remote energy management systems.

Within Australia, T4E Australia is providing services and products for energy monitoring and management systems from large-scale renewable plants, remote and real-time monitoring to implementation of smart grids for transmission/distribution companies.

T4E is now investigating additional services for the Australian market and will be a visible presence at All Energy at its display stand showcasing company expertise and projects.

Contact 0405 403 335, 07-3031-3628, gyilmaz@t4e.com.au

Monash University’s quest to reduce carbon emissions

Principal Engineering Consultant Simon Witts of LCI

MONASH UNIVERSITY in southeast Melbourne has set a long-term objective for campus-wide zero emissions and last year set out to reduce reliance on gas powered hot water systems. A couple of challenges had to be navigated to accommodate solar thermal energy: other than the need for a low maintenance and safe system, the water had to be heated to 150 degrees and the new technology integrated with their existing high temperature hot water district heating system.

To avoid high pressures in the structure, a thermal fluid was used instead of water, and Greenland’s evacuated tube system sourced for the purpose.

Installation commenced in 2016 with the project going live in July.

The first stage of the solar field is around 400 kW peak output, with the solar field operating at 160-190 degrees Celsius. Once fully installed the system will contribute 1 MW into the campus district heating scheme, which is roughly the base load in the summer. Importantly, the entire project is estimated to reduce Monash’s gas use by around 20 per cent.

The project has now entered a two-year ‘tuning’ phase where designers are looking to optimise the field output.

Principal Engineering Consultant Simon Witts of LCI who led the system design says the payback on the low-emission project funded by Monash University is estimated at eight years. https://www.lciconsultants.com.au/news/monash-university-solar-farm

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SHOW PREVIEW

Be part of the All-Energy Australia 2017 Powerhouse Australia’s renewable energy boom will come under the spotlight at All-Energy Australia, one of the most significant platforms for the clean and renewable energy industry. Held in partnership with the Clean Energy Council and taking place from 11–12 October, this is a free-to-attend event.

Earn Continuous Professional Development Points The CEC’s Solar Masterclass Series is a onestop shop for solar designers and installers to receive up-to-date guidance on major design and installation issues currently facing the industry.

Designers and installers will get the latest updates on standards and compliance issues from experts including the Clean Energy Regulator, while also learning their predictions for the next big thing in the future of solar PV. The free-to-attend program also enables installers to accrue 15 Continuous Professional Development (CPD) points per attended session.

The program includes Welcome and design issues, Installation issues, and on day two the Battery face off session, SME How To, and Award winners in Industry Best Practice.

Hear from world class speakers Energy Australia Exhibition and Conference 2017 Snapshot: • 120+ industry speakers • 120+ exhibitors • 6 conference streams • 5 networking events • 4,600+ attendees at last event • Free to attend

All-Energy Australia 2017 features 80 hours of learning with some of the industry’s most respected sector leaders including representatives from Tesla Energy, Solar Australia, EOS Storage, Zenergy Australia, AGL, KPMG, and Array Technologies sharing their expertise, advice and projections on the evolving energy space.

Among the conference program highlights is Solar Power for the Industry, chaired by renewable energy advocate Simon Corbell. In this session which explores the deployment of solar to provide industrial heat Ken Guthrie will discuss international solar thermal applications in Europe and opportunities in Australia.

On the exhibition floor The exhibitor floor gives visitors the chance to hear about the latest clean energy project developments, while giving businesses the opportunity to share their clean-energy related technologies with thousands of potential investors, collaborators and contacts.

The line-up of almost 50 new exhibitors in 2017 include NEXTracker and Catch Power which will launch its latest product the CATCH

52 SPRING 2017

Blue-3. Geli Solutions and Fuji Bridex also feature among the array of international startups taking part in this year’s exhibit.

Networking events From the Grand Networking Event to the CEC’s Women in Renewables lunch, the business to-business event also enables delegates to network with like-minded professionals and celebrate the many talented individuals in the industry. The CEC’s Solar Design and Installation Awards Night recognises excellence in the design and installation of Australian solar projects across a range of categories.

The All-Energy Australia Investor Series, which includes an Investor Breakfast and Investor Lunch, gives investors the opportunity to hear about the latest clean energy project developments and allows start-ups to pitch their projects and product ideas to a room full of investors.

Delegates could also have the opportunity to network with industry specialists in the UK, by taking part in the All-Energy Referral Program.

By referring a friend or colleague to attend All-Energy Australia 2017, participants go into the draw to win a trip overseas to attend the All-Energy UK exhibition and conference from 2-3 May 2018.

EVENT DETAILS What: All-Energy Australia Conference and Exhibition

When: 11-12 October 2017 Where: Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, 1 Convention Centre Place, South Wharf Cost: Free To access the 2017 program and register for free, visit the All-Energy Australia website: www.all-energy.com.au.

For more information about the program or exhibitors, contact Cristina Natoli, Porter Novelli Melbourne on (03) 9289 9555 cnatoli@porternovelli.com.au

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SUSTAINABLE FORCES

Journey to Eden Towards a sustainable future TUCKED AWAY in UK’s south west county of Cornwall is the surreal shaped Eden Project that is designed to showcase human’s dependence on plant life and the fragility of the global eco-system. Often described the eighth wonder of the world, there’s nothing small scale about the biodiversity of the gardens set on a grand scale that attract – and educate – hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the world each year. It’s well worth a visit, the biomes are as interesting as they are awe-inspiring.

The tropical rainforest nestled under four interconnected biomes is the world’s largest greenhouse with more than 1,000 plant varieties collected from several diverse climates and environments. A rainforest canopy walkway takes visitors above the treetops and at its centre is a storyboard spelling out the rise in carbon dioxide levels over the past four million years and the perils of a warming planet. After sweating it out in the humidity, visitors can take a short walk across to the cooler climate of the Mediterranean biome that houses plants from California, the Mediterranean, South Africa and, more recently, Western Australia, which adds a vibrant splash of colour to the already spectacular gardens.

Snaking around the biomes outdoors are tiered gardens that are also designed to educate with their working models explaining matters such as biomass and the power of sustainable solar powered energy, another key feature of the educational facility.

TOP: The biomes rose from a barren clay pit the size of 30 football pitches.

INSET ABOVE: Tracking global carbon dioxide levels.

‘Working towards a better future’: Sustainable design and power It was back in 1999 that archaeologist Tim Smit developed his grand vision for the disused china clay pit and six years on the self-supporting geodesic biomes took shape. The hexagonal external cladding is created from several layers of thin, stain resistant UV-transparent thermoplastic ETFE. The film is sealed and inflated to create a large cushion that acts as a thermal blanket to the structure. Panels vary in size up to nine metres across, with the largest at the top of the structure. Glass was avoided due to its weight and potential dangers.

The complex uses Green Tariff Electricity with the energy sourced from one of the many wind turbines in Cornwall and which were among the first in Europe.

Plans are underway to build a geothermal electricity plant which will generate approximately 4 MW to help power the Eden Project’s many buildings.

Fans of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy TV series will be interested to know that back in 1981 the clay pit featured as the planet surface of Magrathea. A quarter of a century later and the area again took on a sci-fi look following the development of the colossal ‘out of this world’ biomes. www.edenproject.com

LEFT: The Western Australia gardens are a colourful addition to the Mediterranean biome

54 SPRING 2017

Bed and breakfast powered by a 4 kW solar system sitting over the garage (above) and stable

Seeing the light A bed and breakfast located near to the Eden Project turned out to be another local trailblazer with the home and outbuildings – as well as the family Tesla EV – powered through 100 per cent renewables. The 4 kW solar system is set over the stables and garage and hot water is supplied by the rooftop solar water heater.

But it’s the small turbine on the hillock in the adjacent field that presents a clue about the pioneering spirit of proprietor Neil Harris who

back in the 1990s advised on some of the UK’s first wind energy projects.

He has since worked on a series of developments worldwide, including the $130 million 70 MW Mount Millar Wind Farm near Whyalla which came on line in February 2006.

The next big opportunity in renewables lies in energy storage, says Neil, who is now a driving force behind energy storage solutions for industrial and commercial clients across the UK.

Solar & Storage 55

READ ALL ABOUT IT

EXPERT IMPOSTER: During our travels we met an Atlassian staffer who revealed company co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes has been called an ‘energy expert’ and was invited to appear on ABC’s Lateline, yet who feels like an imposter. How did Mike gain the ‘expert’ title? Through a series of tweets convincing Elon Musk about the sense and sensibility of Tesla’s investment in South Australia’s 100 MW battery project.

Curious about imposter syndrome we tuned in to Mike’s TED talk in which he divulged the twittersphere conversation with Musk that was followed by tens of thousands worldwide escalated to a point where he needed to have a greater depth of understanding of battery storage. Mike then spent a full week wading through technical data, speaking to CSIRO and other scientists and has since become one of renewable energy’s most persuasive proponents.

We are delighted to welcome the humble, self-deprecating man to the fold.

(Wonder if he’s available for the Solar Council’s Smart Energy Show in April next year?)

Atlassian is a fantastic tale of home spun Aussie success: almost 70,000 organisations, among them eBay, Twitter, Coca-Cola, Visa, BMW and NASA use Atlassian software to work smarter and faster.

MYTHICAL BEAST: Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison allegedly told a policy forum that “new, cheap coal is a bit of a myth” and ‘fessed that a HELE (high efficiency low emissions) power station would take seven years to build and produce electricity costing seven times more than existing coal-fired generators.

MAN WITHOUT A PLAN: Still on coalition declarations: in late August Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told Leigh Sales of ABC TV: “We have no plans to build a coal-fired power station.”

DON’T BANK ON IT: “I don’t think the banking sector and the industry are looking to build coal-fired power stations for the foreseeable future,” says Australian Energy Council chief Matthew Warren, representing most generators.

56 SPRING 2017

RAPID DESCENT: Simon Holmes à Court of Melbourne University’s Energy Transition Hub says “The coal-fired power sector is in free fall, and wind and solar are competing on cost with fossil fuels … every single panel and turbine installed reduces the market size for inflexible baseload plants.”

He notes that in the five years since 2012 about a fifth of Australia’s coal capacity has disappeared, with no new plants opening in a decade and “none in development”.

Holmes à Court also notes coal generators generally operate for about half a century; already the majority of Australian plants are around 50 years old and, should closures continue at the current rate, no coal-fired power plant would exist by 2040.

GOING GOING: BNEF projects that by 2040, 45 per cent of electricity capacity will be “behind the meter” rather than grid supplied, and that small-scale solar power will have replaced coal as Australia’s largest source of energy.

PARALLEL PATHS: “Whichever party wins this election, they should remember that solar has already won the public vote on energy by a landslide. Every day people recognise the overwhelming benefits solar offers, from cheap power to very real control over energy bills.

If politicians really want to transform choice and competition in the energy market for good, their efforts are best spent making solar power and storage accessible to the millions of people and businesses who want it.

Unlocking the benefits of solar will be easy for the next government … but the industry now urgently needs energy policy to work on a level playing field, with the grain of market forces, while properly costing carbon.

We also need fair tax treatment and effective regulation, including for new build, smart networks and business carbon performance.”

Hear hear!

Not the words of the Australian Solar Council but instead its UK counterpart the Solar Trade Association whose chief executive says solar is backed by 86 per cent of the population and that solar power capacity in the old bard has almost trebled since 2014. The UK’s solar footprint is now 12.3 GW spread across almost one million installations.

PUZZLING: Now to the US where the resignation letter of Donald Trump’s science envoy contained the cryptic message ‘impeach’, as spelt out in the first letters of every paragraph. The renewable energy expert rebuked the president’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord, declaring it was unacceptable to undermine energy and environmental research, also that his response to Charlottesville enabled racism, sexism, and harms the country and planet. “Acts and words matter.” (Initial letters do too.)

SOLAR INSTALLERS

Hub of activity Sydney startup ShineHub explains its bulk buy business model that is reaping all-round rewards.

FOLLOWING A SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGN in New South Wales, ShineHub is planning to go nationwide with its unique take on the ‘bulk buy’ model of solar and storage development. ShineHub provides a feature-rich platform for community energy groups to connect with highly-trained local installers (including Solar Councilcertified Master Installers) and deliver top quality systems at game changing prices for their members.

The platform recently proved its value by catalysing 110 solar installations in Northern Rivers, more than half of which included batteries - all at pricing cofounder Alex Georgiou calls “game-changing.”

The model’s ability to attract customers is undeniable says Alex Georgiou who with Jin Kim co-founded ShineHub in 2016 to bring these advantages to a more installer-friendly, software-driven platform, allowing the best local installers to compete with the big energy companies on price without sacrificing their margins or skimping on quality.

“The end goal is to establish a more efficient process, to connect homeowners with the best products and most professional installers,” Georgiou told Solar & Storage.

ShineHub has partnered with installers that have shown a commitment to quality, particularly those that have completed additional training such as the ASC’s Master Installer program. After approval by the local community partners and ShineHub, these installers get access to engaged customers and a suite of online tools to help streamline the administrative work that comes with a big batch of installations.

Community campaign Blending the benefits of bulk buying with Master Installers

For homeowners and community groups, it all works like a tech-savvy update of the bulk buy model.

ShineHub helps community groups stage events where experts including local installers explain equipment packages and the economics of residential solar systems. Homeowners who decide to take it to the next level can compare and select systems through ShineHub’s online portal or by contacting their team of solar engineers who can design the system remotely.

In contrast to traditional “one-size-fits-all” bulk buys, ShineHub acts as a solar brokerage with a wide range of product options for its customers, including high-end equipment and other tailored solutions.

And to ensure that homeowners have access to all the expertise they need to make decisions with confidence, ShineHub offers the services of “solar mentors” that provide no-nonsense advice on equipment, panel placement, shading analysis, home energy evaluations and more.

Rave reviews The effectiveness of ShineHub’s process was demonstrated in the Northern Rivers campaign led

by COREM (Community Owned Renewable Energy Mullumbimby), a NSW-based community energy group. 110 customers signed up for installations through the ShineHub bulk buy program, with system sizes averaging 4 kW of solar PV and over half including batteries.

One homeowner commended ShineHub for “getting stuck in and not waiting for politicians to make the decision” and complimented the installers.

ShineHub has also partnered with the Solar Council to help customers pick the best products for their home and provide quotes from ASC-certified Master Installers in their area.

Solar Council chief executive John Grimes lauded the ShineHub model as a promising way to drive the uptake of rooftop PV and batteries, saying “We’re happy to have ShineHub as an official partner and supporter of our Master Installer program. Their industry expertise makes choosing and installing a solar energy system easy and enjoyable.”

Georgiou is determined to take this model to other states across Australia, and ShineHub is currently in the process of assessing potential collaborators and regions for their next campaigns.

Community groups and other organisations interested in using ShineHub’s tools to run their own bulk buy can call the company directly at 1800 898 381 or email info@shinehub.com.au Installers interested in becoming official ShineHub partners on these projects can sign up at www.shinehub.com.au/installers

58 SPRING 2017

AUSTRALIAN SOLAR COUNCIL MASTER INSTALLER PROGRAM The Australian Solar Council has launched a major new initiative to promote quality solar installers â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the Master Installer Program.

4 Join the Master Installer Program, complete the training and be recognised immediately as a quality solar installer.

4 Use the Master Installer logo to strengthen your business brand

4 Get listed on our Master Installer customer map 4 100 Express CPD Points â&#x20AC;&#x201C; train online, wherever you are, whenever it suits 4 Get access to latest updates on new products, standards and regulation changes Join today. Just $330 (including GST).

Find more information, visit www.solar.org.au or email sarah@solar.org.au Join the Master Installer Program and help us promote quality solar installations.

SOLAR & ENERGY STORAGE Industry Events

Visit www.enfsolar.com for a larger list of global solar and storage industry conferences

All Energy 2017: The Future of Energy

Intersolar India 2017

11 to 12 October 2017 MCEC, Melbourne www.all-energy.com.au

5 to 7 December 2017 Mumbai, India

Taiwan International Photovoltaic Exhibition 2017 18 to 20 October 2017 Taipei, Taiwan pv@taitra.org.tw www.pvtaiwan.com

intersolar@intersolarglobal.com www.intersolar.in

Solar Expo - A World Future Energy Summit Event 15 to 18 January 2018 Abu Dhabi, UAE afrina.nasrin@reedexpo.ae www.solarexpo.ae

Smart Energy 2018 10 to 11 April 2018 Sydney International Convention Centre, Smart Energy – 56th Annual Solar & Storage Conference & Exhibition www.solar.org.au

11th International Photovoltaic Power Generation Expo February 28 to March 2, 2018 Tokyo, Japan pvexpo@reedexpo.co.jp www.pvexpo.jp/en/

Want to reach thousands involved in solar and storage?

GIVE BRETT A CALL Did you know? Solar & Storage magazine is read by more than 20,000 industry professionals. Our readers include: PV solar designers and installers, large-scale solar project contractors, manufacturers & wholesalers, energy retailers, government representatives of all levels, trainers, consultants and industry thought leaders.

If you would like to boost your presence among the solar & storage community across Australia, contact Brett Thompson.

Brett can also help you to highlight your brand at the industry’s leading show, the Smart Energy Conference and Exhibition. Next year it takes place in Sydney on April 10 and 11.

Brett believes the industry will hit new highs during 2017 and beyond, and he’s here to help companies looking to capitalise on opportunities.

Contact Brett on 0402 181 250 or brett@solar.org.au

60 SPRING 2017

Solar industry Positive Quality™ and performance THE AUSTRALIAN SOLAR COUNCIL’S Positive Quality™

The Positive Quality™ program admits and

program sets rigorous standards that ensure

endorses manufacturers that are independently

manufacturers who achieve and maintain high

tested and verified through plant visits. The

standards are singled out and recognised.

initial assessment consists of a company’s entire

Two prominent panel makers: Jinko and Risen meet those high standards and proudly display the Positive Quality™ logo, a symbol of manufacturing

manufacturing processes undergoing independent and intensive inspection and testing.

This is carried out by the Solar Council’s specially

excellence, which sends a signal of confidence to

appointed Positive Quality™ specialists in a three

consumers.

step process: Certification check and compliance

Participating manufacturers are fully recognised,

with IEC and Australian standards; Factory inspection

consumers enjoy peace of mind and the industry’s

with a 60-point check; and a Product quality check:

reputation is strengthened, delivering Positive

appearance, IV, EL, Hi-Pot, and leakage current.

Positive Quality™ participants’ premises are then

Quality™ for all.

Australian consumers and businesses can have confidence in the quality of the solar panels they are installing by looking out for the Positive Quality™

inspected at random every 12 weeks to ensure the continuity of those high standards.

All solar PV manufacturers of high quality can participate.

Trustmark.

The Solar Council developed the program because

Contact Positive Quality™ Manager

the generic appearance of panels makes it difficult to

Brett Thompson on 0402 181 250,

determine good from bad, unless an identification

email brett@solar.org.au or

mark denotes otherwise. A logo that signifies

visit www.solar.org.au

superior quality.

By displaying the Positive Quality™ logo solar companies convey high standards in panel manufacturing to industry and consumers

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Exporting expertise to the Pacific Australia and New Zealand Solar and Energy Storage Councils are assisting the Pacific Islands with sustainable energy developments.

IN A BID to lift their countries out of poverty and unlock opportunities for sustainable socio-economic development, Pacific Island countries and territories (PICTs) have committed to goals on sustainable energy that reflect their economic and environmental vulnerabilities and the urgency of the needs to address their energy security challenges.

The Government of Tonga, in partnership with the Pacific Community’s Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency and the Australia and New Zealand Solar and Energy Storage Councils, are spearheading an effort

John Grimes and Wayne Smith of the Australian Solar Council and Energy Storage Council with Tonga’s Deputy Prime Minister and Environment Minister the Hon. Siaosi Sovaleni, along with dignitaries from Tonga Power Ltd, the Electricity Commission, the Energy Department of MEIDECC and the Pacific Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (PCREEE)

2017

All-ENERGY EXHIBITION & CONFERENCE

11th-12th,Oct

1300 887 557

MELBOURNE CONVENTION & EXHIBITION CENTRE WELCOME TO VISIT OUR STAND 1320

Powerark Solar is one of Australia’s leading renewable energy wholesale distributors. Headquartered in Sydney, the company’s operations now expand across WA, VIC, QLD and SA. Our team is proud of our local footprint and with offices in each state this enables us to accommodate customers from all across Australia. Our core value is to provide our clients with effective clean energy solutions and high quality products and services.

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to substantially increase the use of renewable energy in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs).

Solar is the most commonly used renewable energy resource in the region, and the direct integration of solar-generated electricity into the power grids of PICTs have reached a point where storage technologies must be employed if they are to further increase the share of renewable energy, Tonga’s Deputy Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni stated.

“Our region cannot avoid the use of energy storage technologies if we are to achieve our respective national renewable energy targets. We’ve got to be proactive and engage in genuine and durable partnerships that would support our region’s sustainable development aspirations.”

The Solar Council has agreed to full collaboration by providing specialised short-term solar and storage technical training courses, accredited and non-accredited training programmes, staff exchange and visits as well as technical and policy advice.

John Grimes said “It is an honour for the Councils to visit Tonga, talk to officials and to visit the PCREEE. There is certainly the political will and professional commitments by all parties to get this collaboration off the ground.”

A tripartite Memorandum of Understanding is being signed and training sessions will soon commence.

Solar Council Corporate Members For full listing of Solar Council Corporate Members see www.solar.org.au

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