Higher Renewable Penetration in New Land & Housing Developments
- $442k Funded by ARENA
- $1.11m Total project cost
Summary
This project aims to explore the commercial viability and impact of renewable energy for large new housing developments with off-grid microgrids.
Need
All Australian suburbs close to existing infrastructure are currently connected to one of the country’s main electricity networks. Little is known about the opportunities and barriers to powering new residential developments with renewable energy and enabling technology, rather than connecting to the grid.
Learn more
Report: Delivering Higher Renewable Penetration in New Land & Housing Developments Through Edge-of-Grid Microgrids
This report demonstrates that Microgrids built on the edge of networks of large mixed use communities can deliver significantly higher amounts of renewable generation compared to traditional non-sustainable energy provision.
Media Release: Making the Case for Energy-Independent Suburbs
A new investigation by Brookfield Energy Australia could pave the way for the new Huntlee residential development in the NSW Hunter Valley to be built off-the-grid and powered by renewable energy.
Project innovation
Brookfield Energy Australia, through Flow Systems, will work with Siemens, Kinesis and CSIRO to determine whether renewables, battery storage and enabling technologies can reliably and cost effectively power new suburbs.
Traditional off-grid communities have been based on diesel generation and rudimentary control systems with no demand side management. This project aims to create an innovative controlled microgrid that integrates and controls central generation with home energy systems.
Benefit
This project will help increase knowledge and address some of the current barriers to take up of microgrids in Australian residential developments.
Brookfield will share key insights about overcoming these barriers with the energy and development industries. This will build capacity in the design, construction, financing and operations of renewable energy microgrids as well as in the regulatory frameworks required.
If the Huntlee developers decide to proceed without a grid connection it could set a precedent for residential developments, potentially accelerating the uptake of renewables in Australia.
