ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Renewable energy development - Australia’s experience
Presented by Emily Kennedy
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Australia’s electricity systems
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Australia’s electricity generation
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Australia’s Renewable Energy Resources
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Australia’s Renewable Energy Resources
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Renewable energy generation in Australia
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Mechanisms to support renewable energy
• 20% by 2020 Renewable Energy Target– Large-scale Renewable Energy Target (LRET) – 41,000
GWh
– Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES)
• $3b Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA)
• A $3b Direct Action Plan to meet Australia’s emission reduction targets using an Emissions Reduction Fund
• New One Million Solar Roofs program
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Installed capacity – wind
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Installed capacity – solar
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Recent renewables developments in Australia
• 1 million houses now have solar PV systems – 11% of dwellings, 2.5 million Australians
• 420MW Macarthur wind farm opened in Victoria – biggest in Southern hemisphere
• Geodynamics turned on a 1MW demo EGS geothermal system
• $4.2 billion invested in renewables and energy smart technology
• Clean Energy Australia 2012 – www.cleanenergycouncil.org.au
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Integration of renewables
• Australia has so far had success at integrating increased renewable energy generation from wind and solar
• South Australia now sources a quarter of its power from wind energy
• Rooftop solar PV has been integrated with few difficulties, but high solar PV penetration in isolated areas can be difficult.
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Five best practices for renewables integration
• Lead public engagement, particularly for new transmission
• Coordinate and integrate planning
• Develop rules for market evolution that enable system flexibility
• Expand access to diverse resources and geographic footprint of operations
• Improve system operations
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA)
• ARENA administers $3 billion in government funding for renewable energy technology innovation
• ARENA manages existing Australian Government projects supporting renewable energy technology innovation
• ARENA’s aims are to:
– Improve the competitiveness of renewable energy technologies
– Increase the supply of renewable energy in Australia
• Website: www.arena.gov.au
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ARENA projects and initiatives
• Technologies supported by ARENA
include solar, geothermal, wave energy,
biofuels
• Regional Australia’s Renewables initiative
• Emerging Renewables Program
• Accelerated Step Change Initiative
• Renewable Energy Venture Capital Fund
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
ARENA – supporting large solar power
• ARENA is pursuing large solar power
opportunities in Australia, such as:
– Kogan Creek Solar Boost
– Broken Hill and Nyngan PV
• ARENA also supports next generation
solar research and development
– Australian solar researchers are
world leaders
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Summary of lessons learned
• Policies are needed to support both renewables deployment and technology development
• The Renewable Energy Target scheme has been an effective deployment mechanism, at moderate cost to consumers
• Developing energy technologies takes time – a long time
• Existing energy market arrangements matter:
– Opportunities for the private sector to invest
– System capable of integrating variable renewables
• Renewables projects face just as much community opposition as other new developments
ENHANCING AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
Thank you for listening