Electricity sector in Australia

Wind power is a mode of production of renewable energy in Australia. Wind power is a rapidly expanding mode of renewable energy production in Australia with an average annual rate of growth in installed capacity of 35% over the five years up to 2011. As of December 2017, there were 4,455 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity and a further 18,823 MW of capacity was proposed or committed.[14] In 2016, wind power accounted for 5.3% of Australia's total electricity demand and 30.8% of total renewable energy supply.[15] At the end of 2016 there were 79 wind farms in Australia, most of which had turbines from 1.5 to 3 MW.[15][16] In addition, 16 projects with a combined installed capacity of 1,861 MW are either under construction, constructed or will start construction in 2017 having reached financial closure. [17]

Wind power in South Australia has 36.9% of Australia's wind power capacity, accounting for 40% of the state's electricity needs as of 2016 and the first year in which wind power was the leading source of electricity in the state.[18] By the end of 2011 wind power in South Australia reached 26% of the State's electricity generation, edging out coal-fired power for the first time. At that stage South Australia, with only 7.2% of Australia's population, had 54% of Australia's installed wind capacity.

Victoria also has a substantial system, with just under 30% of the Australia's capacity as of 2016.[15] In August 2015, the Victorian government announced financial backing for new wind farms as part of a push to encourage renewable energy in the state, which was expected to bring forward the building of a modest 100 MW of new wind energy in the state, worth $200 million in investment. The government expected that there were about 2400 MW worth of Victorian projects that had been approved but were yet to be built.[19]

Solar power in Australia is a growing industry. As of December 2017, Australia had over 7,024 MW of installed photovoltaic (PV) solar power,[20] of which 1,190 MW were installed in the preceding 12 months. In 2017, 23 solar PV projects with a combined installed capacity of 2,034 MW were either under construction, constructed or due to start construction having reached financial closure.[17] PV accounted for 2.4% of Australia's electrical energy production in 2014/15.[21]

Feed-in tariffs and renewable energy targets designed to assist renewable energy commercialisation in Australia have largely been responsible for the rapid increase. In South Australia, a solar feed-in tariff was introduced for households and an educational program that involved installing PVs on the roofs of major public buildings such as the Adelaide Airport, State Parliament, Museum, Art Gallery and several hundred public schools.[22] In 2008 Premier Mike Rann announced funding for $8 million worth of solar panels on the roof of the new Goyder Pavilion at the Royal Adelaide Showgrounds, the largest rooftop solar installation in Australia, qualifying it for official "power station" status.[23] South Australia has the highest per capita take up of household solar power in Australia.

The installed PV capacity in Australia has increased 10-fold between 2009 and 2011, and quadrupled between 2011 and 2016. The first commercial-scale PV power plant, the 1 MW Uterne Solar Power Station, was opened in 2011.[24] Greenough River Solar Farm opened in 2012 with a capacity of 10 MW.[25] The price of photovoltaics has been decreasing, and in January 2013, was less than half the cost of using grid electricity in Australia.[26]

Australia has been internationally criticised for producing very little of its energy from solar power, despite its vast resources, extensive sunshine and overall high potential.[27][28][29][30][31]

Diagram of power and duration of the two sections of battery

Some parts of the Australian grid are thinly connected and local outages have been common.

In Southern Australia a battery installation was performed to keep the local grid running until backup power could be bought on line. the Hornsdale Power Reserve is a grid-connected energy storage system co-located with the Hornsdale Wind Farm in the Mid North region of South Australia. It is promoted as the largest lithium-ion battery in the world.[32]

During 2017 Tesla, Inc. won the contract and built the Hornsdale Power Reserve, for a capital cost of A$90 million, leading to the colloquial Tesla big battery name.[33][34][35]

In November 2019, Neoen confirmed that it was increasing capacity by a further 50MW/64.5MWh[36][37][38] to a combined 185 MWh. The increased storage capacity was installed by March 23, 2020, and the increased power will follow later in the year.[39]

The New Farm Powerhouse in 1952 (now the Brisbane Powerhouse multi-arts venue)

Queensland, Australia's second largest state in terms of physical area (Western Australia is the largest), achieved the early leaders' dream of providing electricity to every home entailing a considerable degree of pioneering, innovation, and commitment. Queensland proved to be a pioneer in the supply of electricity in Australia, with the first public demonstration in Australia, the first recorded use for public purposes in the country, the first Parliament House in Australia and the first commercial operations in Australia all occurring in Brisbane.

Generation and limited distribution was initially the responsibility of local authorities, until a central state-based authority to coordinate the generation and distribution of electrical power was established in 1938.[45] In the late 1990s, the electricity sector was restructured to enable integration with the National Electricity Market (NEM).

The history of power generation and distribution in Queensland can be considered in three major phases: Initial local generation and distribution; creation of a statewide body and the consequent creation of an extensive network; and the restructure to enable integration with the NEM.

Queensland is the most decentralised mainland state, and initial local generation and distribution was the only viable option for the supply of electricity in many instances. The creation of regional, and then a statewide network from 1945 enabled economies of scale and reliability to be obtained, particularly by generating plants. Within a decade of the statewide network being completed, the establishment of the NEM provided new commercial opportunities for generators and improved reliability of supply.

South Australia is rich in energy. It contains significant reserves of fossil fuels such as natural gas, coal, and oil – although there are incentives to phase these out in favour of clean energy. The state also contains large amounts of uranium, including the world's single biggest deposit at Olympic Dam, which represents 30% of the world's total resource.[46]

The State has seen a rapid increase in investment in renewable energy, and was the leading producer of wind power in Australia in 2011.[47] South Australia has been noted for the availability of hot rocks suitable for geothermal electricity generation.[48] The South Australian Government has released plans to make South Australia a green energy hub for Australia's eastern seaboard.[49] During 2020, the state set new records for its lowest (379 MW) and highest (2,576 MW) grid power. Prices also fell, and were negative 10% of the time in the third quarter, but by a smaller amount than previously. This mainly occurred in September, when solar farms paid to supply power. Curtailment was 5.5%, mainly in the daytime.[50] In October 2020, South Australia exceeded 100% of the state's electricity demand using solar power for the first time.[51]

A large proportion of Tasmania's power is produced by hydro-electric means. There are also a number of wind farms producing electricity. An underwater power cable, links Tasmania to mainland Australia. This connection was established in 2005. It allows for surplus electricity to be sold into the national grid. Alternatively electricity supply can also be imported if needed. The vast minority of the states power supply is classified as green energy.

Western Australia has its own grid the South West Interconnected System which is not connected to the rest of country due to distance.

The Northern Territories have multiple grids, which are predominately run by two government owned companies, Power and Water Corporation and Territory Generation.