A 1,200-hectare land in South Australia has been purchased by a developer who plans to utilize it to create a 300MW solar power plant with solar storage of 3.6GWh using a revolutionary technology solution.

Photon Energy, based in Europe, is attempting to expand the technology developed by RayGen, based in Australia. It combines a concentrating solar power (CSP) + solar photovoltaics (PV) combination called ‘PV Ultra’ from RayGen, with a long-duration energy storage technology called ‘thermal hydro.’

PV Ultra uses PV modules and angled mirror towers (heliostats) to create both power and heat. The thermal hydro part is so named because, unlike a pumped hydro plant, it employs reservoirs at different temperatures, one hot and one cold, to store energy: the PV and grid power cools one, while the CSP warms the other.

The temperature gradient is then used to create electricity using an Organic Rankine Cycle engine, which uses thermodynamic cycles to turn steam into mechanical energy with a throughput efficiency of over 70%.

Photon Energy – In-Depth with Solar Storage Prospects

Photon Electricity, which has constructed, operated, and maintained PV facilities in Europe and Australia, announced its strategic cooperation with RayGen in April 2020, tantalizing the potential grand-scale of their projects and the enabling of round-the-clock renewable energy.

The technique has previously been employed in a 1MWac demonstration plant in Victoria, Australia, which has been in operation for six years. Photon Energy is developing various potential sites for the “unique” technology, while RayGen concluded a Series C fundraising round earlier this year for another project in Victoria, this time of 4MW solar with 3MW / 50MWh energy storage.

Solar Storage Options

The AU$55 million fundraising round was completed after the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) provided AU$15 million, in addition to private investment, and followed ARENA’s assistance in sponsoring a feasibility study. AGL, an Australian energy retailer and generator, as well as Schlumberger New Energy, Chevron Technology Ventures, and Equinor Ventures, were among the round’s investors.

That project, in the Victorian township of Carwarp, is already in the works and is scheduled to open in the middle of next year.

Photon Energy stated that preliminary plans for the South Australia project call for 300MW of solar to a 150MW grid link. Although Photon and RayGen said in prior news releases that the technology is intended to provide up to 17 hours of storage, Photon stated this week that the South Australia project’s 3.6GWh solar storage capacity will correspond to more like 24 hours of storage time.

The licensing and grid connection procedure has already begun, and Photon Energy hopes to have its giga-plant ready to construct by the end of 2023.

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South Australia‘s grid has established yet another global first for a gigawatt-scale grid, with the local distribution network registering “negative demand” as a result of rooftop solar production for four hours on Sunday.

It’s not the first time the local network, controlled by SA Power Networks, has suffered negative netload, but it’s the deepest and longest to yet, indicating the quick transition from a one-way grid to a two-way network.

Rooftop Solar – The Gamechanger

It is critical to explain two aspects here. The same day, the Australian Energy Market Operator established a new “minimum need” of 188MW for the South Australian system.

However, that figure includes both the distribution (or local) network and the state’s primary transmission system, run by ElectraNet, which has direct clients such as BHP’s Olympic Dam and other large industrial users, adding to the overall load.

The SAPN encounter indicates a massive solar duck curve. In the half-hour ending at 1.30 pm local time, the highest negative load was – 69.4MW (1 pm grid, or eastern standard time)

The local grid suffered a negative load for the 4th straight in the month of October. It had occurred the previous weekend in late September for the very first time. Usually, the SAPN network has an average load of 1.5GW, with summer peaks reaching up to 3GW.

“Rooftop solar is helping to decarbonize our energy and cut energy prices,” said SAPN head of corporate affairs Paul Roberts in an emailed statement.

“In the not-too-distant future, we anticipate seeing South Australia’s energy demands (all of them) frequently provided 100 percent from rooftop solar throughout the middle sections of the day.” (According to AEMO, this might happen in spring, when temperatures are mild and demand is still relatively low.)

Electric vehicles that could charge during the day, according to Roberts, may help produce load and reduce the stress caused by negative demand.

“Longer term, we aspire to see a transportation system in which the majority of vehicles are powered by renewable-sourced electricity, including solar rooftop PV,” he added.

“It’s wonderful to think that South Australia is driving the globe in this shift, and there’s so much potential for us as a State to make it happen as soon as possible.”

It is one of a series of significant milestones accomplished in South Australia in recent months, that has maintained a world-leading 62 percent of wind and solar (percentage of local demand) over the past year.

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Buying a property with solar panels already installed might be a dream come true – or a nightmare. Here are some suggestions on what you should look for.

Lots of solar power systems have been put on the roofs of Australian homes too far.

This also means that green elements such as solar panels are increasingly being included in homes for sale. It’s a great concept that your new house may save you money on energy costs from the moment you walk in the door by gathering solar energy from its rooftop.

But, unfortunately, not all systems installed in Australia are of high quality, and when combined with age.

This can mean you may be on the hook for the cost of repairing the system sooner than you anticipated – or putting your family at risk owing to electrical safety concerns. It’s also possible that a solar system just isn’t matching your demands.

With that in mind, here are some topics to consider regarding the system as part of your due diligence before purchasing a home.

Between 2001 and 2009, around 85,100 small-scale solar power systems were deployed in Australia. In 2010, there had been 198,000 installations, while in 2011, there had been 360,745 installations.

This indicates that there are more than 500,000 units out there that are 10 years old or older. It’s a good idea to discover out how old the system is, as this knowledge influences other factors.

In a Nutshell: Solar Panels

Solar panels made by reputable companies should last for decades. However, Australia has a fair amount of non-compliant rooftop panels. It might be difficult to determine the brand of solar panels simply by looking at them as:

• They’re on the roof, which isn’t the safest place to be digging around.
• Brand identification will not be visible on the panel face; labelling will be located on the bottom.

Figure out what kind of panels were placed and then read evaluations of the company — not just to see whether the panels are excellent, but also to see if the firm is still in business and has an impact on The Australian economy to support them.

Determine the total capacity of the solar panels as well. Older solar power systems may be relatively modest, and upgrading them may be prohibitively expensive or impossible.

The same is true for solar inverters, however, this element should be much important to discern. The inverter will most likely have a logo on the face and a label on the side indicating the brand, model, and capacity. Acquire data and then research the inverter brand’s ratings.

The age of the solar inverter is also an essential consideration. Because it is the system’s mainstay, its lifespan will be lower than that of solar panels. If the inverter is more than 10 years old, a renewal may not be far away, and it might cost between $1,400 and $2,000, based on the manufacturer and capacity selected.

Warranties and Documentation

Determine what kind of paperwork will be offered to you – user instructions, electrical safety certifications, and any warranty papers are very crucial.

Many high-quality solar manufacturers enable the residual warranty on equipment to be handed to a new owner, as long as the components are not relocated. However, there is another thing to confirm.

However, the guarantee on the installation and configuration may not be transferrable – verify with the installer on this.

Purchasing a property may be a stressful time – there is a lot to think about and several questions to ask; nevertheless, make sure that getting specifics about the home’s solar system is on the agenda.

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A local wind farm has provided solar energy panels to several community facilities in Victoria’s Golden Plains Shire.

The Golden Plains Shire is in Western Victoria. It has a land area of 2,703 square kilometres and a population of roughly 23,000 people, 5,000 of whom live in Bannockburn, where solar panels are already a regular sight.

GPG Australia’s Berrybank Stage-1 Wind Farm, which began commercial operations in July this year, is likewise located in Golden Plains and the neighbouring Corangamite Shire.

• Stage 1 is made up of 43 turbines with a total installed capacity of 180 MW and is planned to generate 644,000 megawatt-hours of clean, renewable energy per year.
• Stage 2 of the project will involve the construction of up to 36 more turbines throughout the two shires.

In addition to removing additional fossil-fuel-based power from the grid and lowering emissions, the wind farm benefits the local population in a variety of ways.

Solar energy panels have already been put on a variety of Council- and community-owned institutions as part of the Berrybank Wind Farm’s Community Engagement and Benefit Sharing Plan, as part of a $170,500 solar power initiative.

As of now, 195 panels have been erected in seven different locations, along with the Bannockburn Family Services Centre and the Meredith Community Centre. PV installations on low-income houses in the Shire will also be part of the initiative.

“In addition to decreasing carbon emissions, the installation of rooftop solar systems at local community facilities and low-income homes would dramatically reduce their power costs,” said Nathan Micallef, Berrybank’s Community Engagement Officer.

Woady Yaloak Kindergarten, Northern Community Centre, Inverleigh Early Learning Centre, Haddon Kindergarten, and Teesdale Children’s Centre are among the other establishments that have systems installed as part of the initiative.

Large Renewables like Solar Energy Providing Long-Term Community Benefits

Large-scale renewables can provide a lot of benefit in the community further than the building period, which is frequently a sugar rush of jobs.

While it’s always wonderful to hear about large-scale wind and solar energy projects, even smaller systems like the ones mentioned above are also making a big and continuous beneficial effect in the lives of Australians.

Installing solar energy panels helps community organisations and councils free up monies that would otherwise be spent on electricity, which can then be allocated to other essential activities that benefit many people.

The community benefits package complementing the Stubbo Solar Farm project in New South Wales is just another example of large-scale renewables doing excellent.

This comprises a $100,000 upfront deposit to Mid-Western Regional Council, as well as about $120,000 in ongoing contributions for community improvement programmes. Bomen Solar Farm, also in New South Wales, is contributing $250,000 to an extensive replanting project, among other things.

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