battery) approved in WA

Posted on January 30, 2019 by Mike — No Comments ↓

Renewable energy developer Lacour Energy has been given the green light for its hyrid West Australia based $250m Kondinin project. Let’s take a look!

Kondinin project

The Kondinin project will have 120MW of wind energy, 50MW of PV solar and also battery storage (specifics not yet released). The hybrid system will mean that the grid connection costs can be shared between the wind and solar farm.

“The Kondinin project location ticks all the boxes to be one of the lowest cost projects in Western Australia,” Lacour director Mark Rayner said.

“There is a strong wind resource located on the Western Power network with plenty of ability to connect the project via an existing substation.”

Mr. Rayner was also quoted in Renews.Biz discussing the future of the project, which could undergo some alterations over the coming year as planning and cost benefit analyses continue:

“Wind is likely to be 120MW, solar 50MW. All of the different components of the project are independent, however, and it may be that the wind farm proceeds alone without the solar or battery or vice versa depending on the outcome of the final feasibility work,” Rayner said.

Chinese wind power specialist Goldwind will supply up to 46 of their wind turbines and also manage the construction of the project, which is expected to run from 18-24 months.

Goldwind managing director John Titchen was quoted in Renew Economy discussing the project and its impact on Western Power network connectivity:

‘A number of new wind farms are expected to be built in Western Australia over coming years as a result of the progressive reforms of the Western Australian Government and the Western Power Interim Access solution currently being rolled out.”

Construction on the farm is expected to commence at the end of the year and will create around 400 solar jobs for Western Australian Solar. Please click here to view the official website of the project.

Pilbara Solar Farm | Alinta Planning Off Grid Solar Farm

Posted on August 24, 2018 by Mike — No Comments ↓

Alinta Energy have applied to the Western Australia Department of Water and Resources to clear 160 hectares at the proposed site of its Pilbara solar farm.

Pilbara Solar Farm | Alinta Energy

The planning application send through to the department is for permission to clear the 160 hectares of the site and also lays out a planning application for the Pilbara solar farm.

“The clearing will be required so that Alinta Energy Transmission (Chichester) Pty Ltd (Alinta) can build, own and operate a solar field located adjacent to Fortescue Metals Group’s (FMG’s) Christmas Creek Substation in the Pilbara region of Western Australia (the Project),” the application says, according to RenewEconomy, who have quoted ‘solar industry insiders’ who estimate the size of the solar farm to be around 60MW (Alinta haven’t announced the size of the proposed farm yet).

“The Project will supply FMG’s Christmas Creek mine site with power to support ongoing mining operations” the report continues.

It’s understood that the project will probably use single axis tracking and hopefully usurp the current energy for the Christmas Creek mine – an expensive and ecologically unfriendly 58MW diesel plant. This goes to show how important renewable energy in resources is – especially when you’re dealing with a site far from the grid. Some of these mines use an astronomical amount of power and having as much as possible of that power requirement coming from renewable energy is a fantastic step in the right direction for the resources industry in Australia.

Last month Alinta made a development application for the 65km energy transmission line which would link the Christmas Creek mine with the Cloudbreak mine – so this gives us a bit of an idea as to what they are hoping to achieve in the future. Don’t be surprised if you hear more about this solar farm and a whopping great battery to go with it! Watch this space.

Kalbarri microgrid: Carnegie to build.

Posted on February 9, 2018 by Mike — No Comments ↓

The long awaited Kalbarri microgrid will be built this year and launched in 2019, as Renewable energy developer Carnegie Clean Energy have signed a $6.8 million contract with state-owned Western Power to build a 5MW Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) in the area.

Kalbarri Microgrid

According to the contract, Carnegie’s subsidiary Energy Made Clean will be teaming up with JV partner Lendlease services to build the sustainable energy storage system. It will be able to generate 4.5MWh and a minimum of 2MWh will always be accessible for backup services.

The BESS facility will have two different modes – “Island Mode”, and “Grid Mode”, with the former allowing operation independent of the electricity grid. Grid mode will do what it says on the tin – helping provide network stabilisation for voltage and frequency to other generation sources.

Carnegie Clean Energy CEO Dr Michael Ottaviano was ecstatic about winning the contract:

“We’re excited to have won an extremely competitive, global tender using the latest in storage and control technologies. This reinforces Carnegie’s leadership in the design and delivery of innovative energy solutions in Australia,” he said.

“(this) contract award comes just over 12 months after the establishment of the EMC/Lendlease JV which has secured $25m in orders in the last 4 weeks with Kalbarri and our Northam Solar Farm. With tender cycles running in excess of 12 months, and a clear focus on delivery of high-value projects for utility grade customers, we are just starting to see the results of our hard work over the past year.” Mr Ottaviano continued.

West Australian Energy Minister Ben Wyatt also spoke of the BESS microgrid in Kalbarri and how it is a “game changer” for communities “…subject to environmental factors that can cause outages. The improved reliability for the region will boost the local tourism and retail operations, as well as enhance the lifestyle of residents.”

WA Electricity Grid Needs Upgrade For Solar

Posted on January 10, 2018 by Mike — No Comments ↓

A leading energy export from the Australian Energy Market Operator has warned that the WA Electricity Grid requires upgrades over the next couple of years or else it risks being completely overwhelmed by the influx of solar in the state.

The WA Electricity Grid & Solar

According to TheWest’s website, solar energy now makes up the majority of the WA Electricity Grid’s energy collection – representing around 700MW of capacity. They interviewed Cameron Parrotte, the head of strategy and innovation at the Australian Energy Market Operator – who noted that measures need to be put into place to manage the influx of solar into the grid before it starts to overload. Parrotte said the amount of additional solar capacity is currently growing at 35% per year.

“When you talk about comparison to other States, percentage-wise we are flying,” he said.

“Some people then say ‘you’ll start running out of roof space’.

“What you are tending to find is that some people who were the early adopters, some of their PVs are starting to reach the end of their life.

“Instead of putting up another 1kW to replace the 1kW they had, they’re putting in 5kW.”

Parrotte / The West said they believe solar power could fully displace conventional methods of energy generation (coal/gas fired plants) for short intervals within as few as five years. Initially, these intervals would be restricted to times when electricity demand is low (e.g. mild, sunny days in the middle of the day) but surely sends another message to those trying to delay the death of traditional electricity methods. It’s now up to providers and authorities to upgrade the grid and make sure it’s able to take the excess power solar will provide.

We’ve previously written about blockchain powered P2P energy trading fintech platforms such as Power Ledger or WePower along with less technologically intense solutions such as community solar – the writing is on the wall here and it’s only a matter of time before renewable energy completely overtakes coal and gas fired plants, so it’s important the government act now to ensure the grid is capable of withstanding the new era of energy generation!

WA Electricity Grid - Sunwise - Ludlow Solar Installation — WA Electricity Grid – Sunwise – Ludlow Solar Installation (source: sunwiseenergy.com.au)

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Kondinin project (wind/solar/battery) approved in WA