Energy Minister, Ben Wyatt has announced that a new trial, which will make battery storage more accessible and manageable for Western Australians will officially launch today – three months ahead of schedule.
Lead by Western Power and Synergy, in collaboration with the City of Mandurah, the PowerBank trial will be the first Australian utility-scale battery to be integrated into an already-established major metropolitan network, allowing a shared storage service to meet customer needs.
A 105-kilowatt (420 kilowatt-hour) Tesla battery has been connected to the electricity grid in Meadow Springs, allowing households with rooftop solar panels to maximise their existing grid connection.
At a cost of $1 per day, each customer participating in the 24-month trial will be able to effectively store up to 8 kilowatt-hours of excess power generated during the day from their solar PV systems in the battery. They will then be able to draw electricity back from the PowerBank during peak time without having to outlay upfront costs for a behind-the-meter battery storage system.
Minister Wyatt clarified that homes taking part in the trial will not be locked into the program, which will allow them continuing flexibility and choice in deciding how they meet their individual electricity needs. Customers will also receive a quarterly activity statement advising of savings to date, using a system developed by Synergy.
“PowerBank is another example of smarter investment by two of WA’s utilities into network infrastructure that has the potential to benefit all customers with an existing grid connection,” he said.
“For customers with solar panels, this is a simple opportunity that uses the existing network connection to their home, requires zero augmentation to their connection, and delivers savings and flexibility to suit their needs.”
“Investing in battery storage across the grid is a more cost-efficient way of managing the growth in residential solar instead of traditional infrastructure spends like substation or transformer upgrades. It is also currently a cheaper and a far better community solution to hundreds or thousands of behind the meter individual household batteries,” Mr Wyatt commented.