Aussie ARENA to pour USD 1.1m in renewables storage R&D

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has agreed to provide AUD 1.4 million (USD 1.1m/EUR 980,000) to the University of Adelaide for research in the field of renewable energy storage.

The funding will be used by the university and its partners in the project to develop an online Australian energy storage knowledge bank, a hub for relevant reports and case studies, as well as information on regulation, reliability, safety, operation and performance of such systems countrywide. It will also build a mobile energy storage testing facility for independent simulated and field testing of these technologies to generate high-resolution data for the knowledge bank, ARENA said in a press release on Wednesday.

“Reliable, cost effective storage has a vital role to play in smoothing out energy supply and increasing the amount of renewable energy used in Australia,” ARENA CEO, Ivor Frischknecht, noted. It will also encourage investments in both on- and off-grid green energy projects of various capacities in remote locations, he added.

SA Power Networks, the Energy Networks Association, Solar Storage Australia and the South Australian Government will also contribute AUD 650,000 for the project, while integration specialists Power and Drive Solutions and ZEN Energy Systems are providing their know-how for the construction of the test facility by early 2016. Industry participation is necessary for the outcome of the scheme, project leader Nesimi Ertugrul mentioned.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.777/EUR 0.700)

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