The energy transition of Australia wins “really measurable momentum”, in which the market operator reports a record golf of new projects for solar energy, wind and energy storage projects through the schedule connection process, on a larger scale than ever before.
The newest Australian Energy Market Operators (AEMO) Connections Scorecard shows an increase in new generation and storage capacity with 260 projects of a total of 53 GW through the connection process in the National Electricity Market (NEM), an increase of almost 40% compared to the same time last year.
Aemo said that the pipeline is expanding in every phase of the process and that project sizes also increase considerably, powered by an increase in independent batteries and hybrid solar-plus-battery projects. The Connections Scorecard shows that batteries are the dominant technology that continues through the early stages of the pipeline in all regions, while the average project size has more than doubled since 2022.
“We see many hybrid projects and they are usually solar and storage on a grid scale and batteries with grid-forming inverters,” said Aemo Chief Executive Officer Daniel Westerman.
In addition to the seven scheduling batteries In the NEM today, another 78 of 15.6 GW go through the pipeline.
“These trends show how investors adapt to the economy of negative wholesaler prices during the day they can generate that energy and then store that power later in the day when the demand increases in the evening,” Westerman said.
Aemo’s Connection Scorecard transfers the most important statistics for approval of the application, registration and complete output mile poles, including trend analysis, volumes and duration and timetables. The data does not include the separate grid of West -Australia or other isolated graters such as the Pilbara, MT Isa and the Northern Territory.
In the 12 months to June, 60 projects of a total of 15.7 GW capacity protected application for approvals in the NEM, equal to almost 80% of the total capacity in the NEM today and a capacity increase of 39% compared to the same time last year.
“Of these, 7 GW has already been built and put into use of complete output,” said Aemo Executive General Manager System Design Merryn York.
“The investment Building in the NEM continues to build, which is crucial when the decades old generation retires. “
Another 37 projects of a total of 9 GW were registered in the last 12 months, compared to 2.5 GW last year, and a record number of generation and storage activa achieved full output.
“Pleasant, 29 projects of a total of 4.4 GW capacity achieved a complete output this year, the double total of last year,” said York, adding that 10 projects for 1.5 GW received full output in the quarter of June alone.
These include the 280 MW Wollar and 198 MW Stubbo Solar Farms in New South Wales, the 75 MW Wunghnu and 30 MW Kerang projects in Victoria and the 30 MW Mannum Solar Farm in South Australia. It also includes the 200 MW / 400 MWH Greenbank Battery Project in Queensland, and the 185 MW / 370 MWH Koorangie and 100 MW / 2300 MWH Valley Big Battery in Victoria. The Goyder South 1A and 1B Windparken in South Australia also reached full output in the quarter of June.
Westerman said the results show that the energy transition of Australia is not only speeding up, it gets a really measurable momentum.
“It is a record wave of renewable generation and storage that progresses through the schedule connection process on a scale that is much larger than we have seen before,” he said.
“In general, these are record levels of investments compared to the past four years and they are not only figures, they represent real, tangible progress in the direction of replacing the released coal -fired generation of Australia.”
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