A new report from the Chief Scientist, Alan Finkel has found Australia to be leading the world in residential battery storage.
Dr Finkel said nearly 21,000 battery storage systems were installed in homes across the country in 2017 — three times as many as the previous year.
Minister for the Environment and Energy, Josh Frydenberg announced the findings, saying Australia was the world leader not only in the use of rooftop solar, but also in the installation of residential battery storage by power capacity.
“The report shows that the cost of batteries is declining as Australia’s technology, manufacturing and market competition is advancing, and confirms the critical role energy storage will play in the transformation of Australia’s electricity system,” Mr Frydenberg said.
“As more renewable energy — mainly in the form of solar and wind power — enters our electricity grid, the need for energy storage solutions grows.”
He said energy storage was a Government priority, and it had supported the development of Australia’s first virtual power plant last year, comprising 1,000 households and businesses, and had since funded the development of another, providing a further 1,200 batteries to homes.
“We’ve also funded the installation of three large-scale batteries across Victoria and South Australia and we’re exploring, upgrading and expanding several pumped-hydro energy storage projects that benefit the whole National Electricity Market,” Mr Frydenberg said.
“Going forward, the National Energy Guarantee will require energy retailers to ensure they have sufficient reliable energy including storage, making certain there is always energy available to meet our needs.”
