ACLE Services

💬 South Australia Set to Become the First Non-Hydro Grid in the World to Achieve 100% Net Renewables

South Australia has taken a significant step toward complete electricity decarbonisation, as it was awarded federal funding to guarantee that the state becomes the first non-hydro reliant grid in the world to achieve 100% net renewable energy.

The agreement, aimed at ensuring the state achieves its goals by 2027, will see the federal government underwrite a minimum one gigawatt of new wind and solar generation capacity and another 400 MW (1,600 MWh) of storage. This is significant as it cements SA as Australia’s ongoing leader in the clean energy transition, largely reliant on wind and solar.

Last week Open NEM reported that solar energy contributed 13.7% of the state’s total, an already impressive share which is set to skyrocket in coming years.

With a number of our projects, currently operational in South Australia, ACLE is proud to be able to contribute to this landmark achievement and our team looks forward to doing our bit to ensure this 2027 target is met.

💬 Storage key to getting more solar installed!

The latest SunWiz data shows a slowdown in the residential rooftop market, with June installations dropping by 14% compared to May. Will it be a blip or is it a sign of a longer-term drop off in rooftop solar?

At ACLE, we recognise the importance of residential solar – it remains the best way for households to reduce their energy bills and the Energy Market Operator (AEMO) estimates almost 80% of homes will have solar by 2050, up from around 33% today. This suggests the Sunwiz data is a minor blip, with massive growth to come supported by falling prices for panels.

To achieve this growth, storage is going to become increasingly important, so the rollout of utility-scale and residential batteries must be an ongoing priority for energy system planners. This will ensure there is the storage capacity to soak up the energy generated from all those solar installations during the day, which can be sent back to the grid when it is needed.

Our team is pleased to be working on storage projects up and down the country that will provide this much-needed capacity. We are looking forward to bringing this online so the solar revolution can continue.

💬 Future Made in Australia, must work for Australians

As the director of ACLE Services Pty Ltd, an Australian owned and operated EPC, I am delighted to see the Federal Government’s $22.7bn Future Made in Australia Bill presented to parliament. The Bill, introduced by Treasurer Jim Chalmers, aims to help fund the transition of the economy toward renewable energy by supporting clean industries through investment, and supporting stronger community benefit principles. The Bill would see a significant investment made into key areas designed to successfully transition the economy toward realising its energy superpower status, including workforce and skills capability, renewable investment opportunities and making marked improvements to the approvals process for projects.

Whilst this is clearly a significant shift for the Government to make, what’s more important is the equal focus it has placed on the crucial dimension of local benefit and support. Which, as has been proven time and time again, is critical to successfully achieving any major development.

For us at ACLE, this announcement is great news. Enabling faster approval times, improving avenues for investment in great projects and upskilling Australia’s crucial skilled workers are all fantastic developments. However, we know that at the end of the day, the Australians whose backyards will house these projects, their businesses and their skills matter most.

Whilst the investment channels (detailed below by the Federal Government) are essential, we must keep Australians at the heart of them. This is supported by the Bill’s prioritisation of benefit principles, which aim to act as a guarantee that these investments will benefit and prioritise local workers, industry and communities. This is something ACLE has always aimed to do in our own practice and workforce.

🔆 420+ Community Batteries Greenlit Across the Nation 🔆

Some great news over the past week, as over 420 community batteries received approval from the Federal Government and Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) as the momentum behind local network capacity and rooftop solar builds.

The batteries are set to benefit local community groups across every state and territory, alleviating local network constraints, and will range from between 50 kilowatts (kW) and 5 megawatts (MW), providing a total of about 280MWh.

Darren Miller, ARENA's CEO, hailed the initiative as the “missing link in our renewable energy system”, assisting to reduce costs and fill crucial reliability gaps to the nation’s communities.

What’s more, the Yarra Energy Foundation recently released a survey testing Aussies’ feelings toward community batteries, revealing overwhelmingly strong support. This support for local energy initiatives opens the path for further investment in stabilising and securing local energy supply.

ACLE welcomes this neighbourhood battery initiative, which enables further solar installation across the nation, as a crucial step in unlocking the full potential of the renewable resources Australia has to offer.