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The Guardian

Renewables and battery storage will replace gas as South Australia’s main source of electricity within eight years, according to industry analysts.
The state’s energy transition could be a “leading case study on managing a power system in transition for other mature markets to follow”, says a report by Wood Mackenzie.
The news comes as the South Australian government presses ahead with plans to build its own new gas generator and AGL pursues plans to build a new gas power station to replace part of its ageing Torrens Island gas generator.
“Currently, South Australia’s peak loads are managed by open-cycle gas turbine (OCGT) plants,” said Wood Mackenzie’s Asia-Pacific power and renewables principal analyst, Bikal Pokharel.
“But, by 2025, battery storage would be cheaper than OCGTs in managing peak loads ... OCGTs would then be relegated as emergency back-ups.”
According to the analysis by Wood Mackenzie and Greentech Media Research, battery costs will fall by 50 per cent by 2025.
“If current cost trends continue, 2025 could very well see renewables and batteries overtake rival generating alternatives in dominating South Australia’s power system, and the region could become a leading case study on managing a power system in transition for other mature markets to follow,” Pokharel said.

The researchers estimated that 1600 MWh of battery storage would be enough to satisfy South Australia’s needs by 2025. That is four times the capacity and 12 times the storage of the new Tesla Hornsdale facility announced this month but would be a very different type of battery system since that facility is designed for energy security, not for residual peak supply.
The price of battery storage would drive gas out of the system, the analysts said, but so too would the high penetration of wind and solar.
Assuming all committed renewables projects proceed, 67 per cent of South Australia’s capacity would be provided by renewable generation by 2025.
Australia to invest billions in hydro plant in Snowy Mountains to stem energy crisis
That capacity would require dispatchable power to make up for the intermittent nature of wind and solar. But, according to the analysts, gas would not be able to provide that service.
“With significantly increased renewable penetration and hence the intermittency, monthly and hourly gas demand fluctuations will be increasingly pronounced,” Pokharel told the Guardian. “Current gas supply and transportation terms cannot meet this type of demand profile.”
As a result, they found that expensive diesel generators might become economic since the fuel can be easily stored and made available quickly when needed.

Pokharel said changes to the operation of the market could allow gas to compete after that date. To do that, subsidies would be required in return for standing capacity, or for “must-run” gas units.
The state also said on Thursday that it will seek to reduce the electricity bills of more than 180,000 low-income households by directly negotiating with energy companies on their behalf.
The government will invite energy companies to bid to be the supplier for low-income households that currently receive energy concessions.
Elon Musk says Tesla can fix South Australia’s blackouts in 100 days, or battery system is free
Any savings from buying in bulk will be passed on to consumers, says the social inclusion minister, Zoe Bettison. “We know the majority of people receiving the state government’s energy concessions are on standing contracts; we believe we can negotiate a much better deal for them,” Bettison said.
The government is hoping that as well as offering lower prices the energy companies will include flexible payment options to assist people paying their bills.


Renewables to replace gas as South Australia’s main electricity source within eight years

The Woodside Petroleum gas plant in Burrup, Western Australia. Photo: Reuters

David Brockwell walks between wind turbines during a routine inspection at the Infigen Energy wind farm located on the hills surrounding Lake George, 50 km north of the Australian capital city of Canberra May 13, 2013. Infigen Energy's Capital Windfarm, built five years ago, was a vanguard for wind power as Australia sought to wean itself from cheap fossil-fuel power in the face of climate shift blamed in part for Lake George's transformation to a vast plain. But big plans to expand the Infigen renewable energy project near Canberra and others like it have been put on hold awaiting the outcome of an election in September. The ballot, which opinion polls show the opposition conservatives winning, along with an economic slowdown and rising home energy bills have put the brakes on Australia's decade-long clean energy push. At stake in the Sept. 14 vote is a controversial carbon trading scheme championed by ruling Labor to curb greenhouse gas emissions, with a $20 billion pipeline in renew

RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / WOODSIDE ENERGY LTD" NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS NO ARCHIVES This undated Woodside Energy Ltd handout photo released on August 17, 2011 shows Woodside's North Rankin A platform, North West Shelf Project, off the coast of Western Australia. Australian energy giant Woodside Petroleum reported an 8.1 percent fall in half-year net profit to 828 million USD on August 17, 2011 despite a surge in revenues due to bullish oil and gas prices. AFP PHOTO / HO / Woodside Energy Ltd

Elon Musk to build world’s largest battery to help solve South Australia’s power woes

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill and Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk listen to a question during an official ceremony in Adelaide, Australia. Photo: Reuters

A handout photo taken and received on July 7, 2017, shows South Australia's Premier Jay Weatherill (L) and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk (R) at an announcement in Adelaide. Elon Musk's Tesla said it will build what the maverick entrepreneur claims is the world's largest lithium ion battery within 100 days, making good on a Twitter promise to ease South Australia's energy woes. "This system will be three times more powerful than any system on Earth," Musk told reporters in the state capital Adelaide. / AFP PHOTO / SOUTH AUSTRALIA DEPARTMENT OF PREMIER AND CABINET / STR / ----EDITORS NOTE ----RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE MANDATORY CREDIT " AFP PHOTO / SOUTH AUSTRALIA DEPARTMENT OF PREMIER AND CABINET" NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill (R) listens to Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk speaking during an official ceremony in Adelaide, Australia July 07, 2017 to announce that Tesla will install the world's largest grid-scale battery in the South Australian state. AAP/Ben Macmahon/via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE. AUSTRALIA OUT. NEW ZEALAND OUT.

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