Ausgrid rolls out community battery solution for greener network
Brad ThompsonReporterOct 18, 2020 – 4.23pmNSW electricity distributor Ausgrid will roll out long-awaited community batteries as part of its plan to shift investment towards solar supply options.
Ausgrid has confirmed three such batteries will be installed in its network in 2021 as part of a trial and following lengthy negotiations with local councils.
Ausgrid chief executive Richard Gross sees community batteries as a game changer. Jessica Hromas
Customers with solar panels who are connected to a community battery can use it to store their excess solar power and access it as needed without the upfront costs associated with their own storage battery.
Ausgrid has talked up community batteries as central in the future of the network in a decarbonising world for the past couple of years, and as a way to provide network by avoiding equipment overloads.
The trial batteries will be installed in suburbs controlled by Northern Beaches City Council, City of Canterbury Bankstown and Lake Macquarie City Council.
The move follows the release of a feasibility study on whether community batteries were a feasible alternative to traditional network investment.
The study found the community battery initiative could be feasible within as little as three years.
Ausgrid has claimed community could help drive down energy prices by encouraging greater solar uptake by household and business, and in turn reducing peak demand on the grid.
Ausgrid chief executive Richard Gross said he believed the community battery trial would be “a game changer for our industry”.
“Joining this trial requires no upfront investment for our customers compared to installing their own battery and will provide a great option to save on energy costs,” he said.
