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As I sit at my laptop tapping out this text, the solar is shining in stunning Brisbane, capital of Queensland, Australia. We’re shifting into summer time and the solar is up lengthy earlier than I’m. After I awake, the home battery is filling up and charging the automotive. Quickly, the pool pump will kick in and in addition be run by the home battery. The draw back is that we are actually operating air con day and evening as temperatures and humidity each rise. The upside is that we don’t pay something for it. All our vitality wants are met by rooftop photo voltaic. Not bragging, simply letting my readers know what is feasible.
Like our American cousins, we have now simply had an election and Queenslanders have elected a extra right-wing authorities. Though the incoming conservative Liberal Nationwide Celebration introduced that it will maintain the earlier authorities’s interim targets on renewable vitality heading in the direction of internet zero by 2050, it has now reneged. 2050 nonetheless stays as a vacation spot goal, however there aren’t any interim targets, and due to this fact no coherent plan. Simply watching what is occurring round us leads me to imagine we’ll obtain that concentrate on lengthy earlier than the due date it doesn’t matter what political path is pursued.
Nevertheless, bumps within the highway persist. One of many first actions of the newly elected state authorities was to cancel the earlier authorities’s bold pumped hydro undertaking. “The Pioneer-Burdekin Pumped Hydro undertaking would have been the most important renewables undertaking of its type on this planet, and was chosen on account of its beneficial topography and proximity to high-quality wind and photo voltaic era sources within the Central and Northern Queensland Renewable Power Zones.”
Value blowouts have been blamed and the brand new authorities claims it would enact a gaggle of smaller initiatives. Although, these haven’t been recognized. As battery costs fall at an ever growing price, pumped hydro could effectively go the way in which of inexperienced hydrogen.
Again to my sunny morning discourse: at current, in line with the NEM Watch widget, photo voltaic and wind are supplying upwards of 70% of Queensland’s electrical energy. Keep in mind, this can be a stay feed. The remainder of the facility is coming from black coal and just a little gasoline. Queensland’s important export is coal!
Certainly, there may be a lot renewable vitality information coming throughout my desktop, it’s onerous to decide on what to put in writing about — maybe a abstract with hyperlinks could be the easiest way to take action. Those that need extra element can observe the hyperlinks.
Let’s begin near dwelling. Simply three days in the past, Tesla Megapacks began to reach on the former Swanbank coal mine and energy station in Ipswich (30 km from Brisbane). My daughter lives within the space and thought it was the noise of low flying planes, however couldn’t see any, then she noticed the Megapacks on the information. By mid-next yr, Yurika in collaboration CleanCo can have put in 138 Tesla Megapacks. The Swanbank Clear Power Hub can have a 250 MW/500MWh BESS.
No surprise it feels like rumbling thunder or low-flying planes — 5 delivery container sized Tesla BESS megapacks are being delivered every morning and one other 5 every afternoon. Costing AUD$330 million, the BESS will assist handle the grid, as it could actually reply in milliseconds to vitality market calls for. The world has gone from a coal mine to an influence station to a dump and now to a clear vitality hub. What an evolution.
Slightly additional away, about 300 km west of Brisbane, the Wambo Wind Farm is taking form. The primary stage of 42 generators is predicted to be business by mid 2025 and can contribute 252 MW of energy capability to Queensland’s grid. Stage 2 will present a further 254 MW from 41 wind generators. That’s one other half a gigawatt from wind! Sufficient to energy 312,000 Queensland properties.
The Vesta wind generators are the tallest to be put in in Australia thus far, with a tip peak of 247 metres. That’s fairly an erection! They’re being transported from the Port of Brisbane to website six nights every week between 10pm and 7am. The web site even offers a route map. A part of this route would be the identical because the automobiles delivering the BESS to Ipswich. Seems to be just like the thunder shall be going day and evening for Ipswich residents.
Like the two gigawatt Macintyre Wind Farm undertaking, the joint house owners of Wambo Wind Farm Stanwell and Cubico have constructed social licence by offering funding of as much as $200,000 to assist area people teams.
Andrew Forrest’s Squadron Power has put in turbine quantity 50 on the Clarke Creek Wind Farm. That’s midway to completion. Clarke Creek is 150 km northwest of Rockhampton and over 800 km from Brisbane. These generators won’t be trucked by Ipswich — that needs to be some reduction for native residents. On completion, the 450MW wind farm ought to produce sufficient electrical energy to energy round 330,000 properties and keep away from 738,000 tonnes of CO2 per yr.
In keeping with Squadron, Clarke Creek is already producing clear vitality. Stanwell Company (owned by the Queensland authorities) has a 15-year PPA (Energy Buy Settlement) with Clarke Creek Wind Farm. “After serving to to show the sod, kicking off development two years in the past, it’s nice to be again at Clarke Creek Wind Farm to rejoice this milestone second with Squadron Power. As soon as operational and over the following 15 years, Stanwell will buy greater than 75 per cent of the clear vitality generated from the primary stage of the Clarke Creek Wind Farm to offer to our prospects. This settlement ensures Stanwell continues to construct our renewable era portfolio as we renew our vitality portfolio,” stated Stanwell CEO Michael O’Rourke, heralding this vital step in the direction of Queensland’s clear vitality future.
The Australian Power Market Operator (AEMO) tells us that, nationally, a peak renewable document was “set on 9 September, when renewable sources equipped 72.2% of complete Nationwide Electrical energy Market (NEM) era. On this interval rooftop photo voltaic led the way in which with 38.5% of complete era, with grid-scale photo voltaic contributing 18.3% and wind contributing 13.4%.” Don’t anticipate this document to final lengthy.
AEMO Govt Basic Supervisor Reform Supply Violette Mouchaileh stated: “It’s promising to see Australia’s vitality transition proceed with extra renewable era capability both coming on-line or progressing. AEMO is getting ready the grid to run on 100% renewable era at anybody time limit, and this quarter noticed complete renewable era accessible at over 100% of demand on two events.”
The longer term is wanting brilliant, renewable, and electrical. Simply the initiatives listed above will add the potential of one other gigawatt of wind era in Queensland, and they’re only a pattern in a single state. Watch this area!
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