Not sure if this has been posted - no mention of battery brand but photos tell the story for 1 installation . Since the Canowindra is a pilot it should have good data from it as a example - not sure if when that will be published with true cosst including grant etc

Odd that in Yass on East Coast South of Sydney with $120k spent he is using genset 4-6 h a day in winter? Not sure what his set up is or his energy usage if he has coolrooms or industry on farm . Might not have got value for money? Maybe winter fog!! That area has large wind turbines but sheep farmers may not like them.

In contrast - 6 redflow batteries in NSWPI pilot - latest version as well? Canowindra property in Central West NSW doing peer to peer power sharing with neighbours - not sure about law on that in NSW or Australia as you woudl be decalred a generator in years gone past?
https://www.pecoradairy.com.au/about-us-1

"Ms Cains installed 100 north facing solar panels on her farm sheds and six 10kw-per-hour batteries as part of a pilot project with the Department of Primary Industries and she is delighted with the result.

"They've really secured the farm's energy needs," she said."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-25/farm-solar-panel-battery-costs-hamper-renewable-transition/102012188

Renewable energy transition tough for some farmers as costly batteries come up short

ABC Rural

/

By Grace O'Dea

Posted Fri 24 Feb 2023 at 10:20pmFriday 24 Feb 2023 at 10:20pm

Dave Hewlett says he spent $120,000 on a battery storage system but it's not enough to keep him from switching his generator on.(Supplied: Dave Hewlett)

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Farmers that want to switch to renewable energy to counter rising electricity prices are finding batteries cost twice as much to install in rural areas and that the technology still is not up to the task.

Key points:

• An AgriFutures Australia report finds batteries are double the cost in rural areas
• The research group says many farmers are struggling with the up-front costs of installing green technology
• Others who have successfully made the change are reporting huge savings

Dave Hewlett installed 120 solar panels and a 146-kilowatt battery storage system on his 700-hectare wool farm at Yass in New South Wales with the aim of going completely off-grid.

The system cost $120,000, but he says it is not enough to power his home and farm year-round and he has to run his generator when there is not enough energy from the sun.

"There's nearly 900 hours on our generator over winter to supplement the lack of solar panel power to put power into the batteries," he said.

Mr Hewlett's hope was to run the entire property through his battery storage system, but gaps in the technology made him question Australia's rapid shift away from fossil fuels.

"Seriously, I'm so negative about this whole thing," he said.

"It depresses me.

"We are shutting down coal-powered plants far too quickly."

Higher transport costs are among the reasons given for the greater expense for farmers.

Research group AgriFutures Australia says battery storage will be one of the keys to helping farmers get to net zero emissions and in easing consumer pressure in the renewable transition.

The research group recently released a series of resources detailing eight market-ready renewable energy solutions, including one on battery storage.

AgriFutures Australia Jane Knight and her daughter, Phillipa, on their farm in Bullioh.(Supplied: Jane Knight)

Need for speed

AgriFutures national rural manager Jane Knight wants to see more policy discussions about bringing costs down for farming businesses, because it can take years to cover the cost of renewables.

"I would encourage government and policymakers to review the reports to see if there are opportunities to make change that would allow for a more rapid adoption in alternative energy and lead to faster decarbonisation," she said.

"At the moment, with the way the market is and the way the policy settings are in place, it means farmers are having to put a lot of output up-front to bring these batteries onsite."

But Ms Knight suggests that trends already show the cost of batteries are decreasing as the technology develops.

"Hopefully with the conversations that are happening with the government we should be able to see the policy settings change so farmers can be more supported through things like grants," Ms Knight said.

Farmer Cressida Cains has made huge savings on her power costs.(Supplied: Cressida Cains)

Trading scheme

Some properties have made savings with their battery systems.

NSW Southern Highlands dairy farmer Cressida Cains says she has cut her power costs by 70 per cent.

Ms Cains is involved in a trading system with other farmers to buy and sell energy to cover any gaps in solar and battery capacity.

Ms Cains installed 100 north facing solar panels on her farm sheds and six 10kw-per-hour batteries as part of a pilot project with the Department of Primary Industries and she is delighted with the result.

"They've really secured the farm's energy needs," she said.

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https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-08-28/renewable-solar-energy-use-increases-on-australian-farms/101350382

Renewables and solar as a source of reliable power increases on Australian farms, as farmers share the load

ABC Rural

/ By David Claughton

Posted Sun 28 Aug 2022 at 3:37amSunday 28 Aug 2022 at 3:37am, updated Sun 28 Aug 2022 at 3:56amSunday 28 Aug 2022 at 3:56am

Farmers are experimenting with massive solar arrays and other renewable technology to power their businesses.( Supplied: Dairy Australia)

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Dairy farmer Michael Cains remembers clearly the wet and stormy night that he decided to install renewable energy to improve his power reliability.

Key points:

• Farmers are experimenting with all types of renewable technology
• Some are trading renewable energy with neighbours
• Solar is popular, but systems using woodchips and straw as biomass have potential

His power had gone out on his Canowindra property in Central West NSW, and his energy provider had told him it would take three days to get it back on.

"I headed down the hill to grab the 20-kilovolt generator, revved the crap out of my ute getting up the hill. I'm drenched. I stick the generator into the system just as the power comes back on," he said.

He bought solar panels and a battery using a government grant and a loan from the Rural Assistance Authority.

He now trades that power with neighbouring businesses using a 'peer-to-peer' system.

"We can use our own solar first, fill up the battery second, trade it between the house and the bar/cafe we've got in the middle of Robertson, and when we've got excess energy, we can send that to Rosnay (a vineyard), or The Pines (a bed and breakfast)."

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Mr Cains is not the only dairy farmer doing this, with a 2020 survey by the peak industry body finding that 71 per cent of farms installed at least one type of renewable energy between 2015 and 2020.

Dairy Australia said the trend was well up from 44 per cent and mostly included solar panels, water heating, and variable speed drives, which regulate energy flow into machinery to make it more energy efficient.

While data across the entire agricultural industry is not available, it is clear many are making the switch.

Mr Cains' neighbour, winery and orchard owner Sam Statham has installed 87 solar panels to power his property and contribute to the 'peer-to-peer' system.

Sam Statham has buried his pipes to reduce evaporation while his solar powered pumps work during the day.(Supplied: Sam Statham)

Mr Statham said he generally irrigated during the day when the solar pumps work best.

"That's when the plants need water, but that's also when the water will evaporate the most from the heat from the sun, so what we did was put our irrigation dripper tubes underground in the middle of the vine row," he said.

Further north in Queensland, Darling Downs cotton and chickpea producer Don Baartz used a 'green loan' from a major bank to spend $37,600 on a solar system to run his 18-kilowatt bore pump.

As well as reducing his emissions, he said it is saving him $8,000 a year in electricity costs.

Solar energy powers three phase pumps, refrigeration and more on this farm.(Supplied: Leap Farm)

Turning farm biomass into energy

Solar power is not the only type of renewable energy that farmers are turning to. Waste products from crops, grasses and plantation timber are also being used as a source of energy and business diversification.

Some farmers use rice hulls and macadamia nut shells to drive gasification and pyrolysis plants.

Louise Brown from HydGene Renewables is developing new catalyst technology to produce hydrogen from straw, something she said was much more plentiful than many would think.

"We were contacted last week by a farmer in Victoria who has 200 tonnes of straw a year that is burnt," Dr Brown said.

She argued that it would be easy to collect and deliver that biomass to a central facility where it can be converted into clean hydrogen for domestic or export use.