Australia’s National Science Agency, the CSIRO, has released its Renewable Energy Storage Roadmap (Roadmap). The Roadmap was developed in consultation with 50 industry organisations and state and federal governments, and aims to ‘ignite meaningful discussion on energy storage, address uncertainties around net zero pathways and provide decision-makers with the tools to make informed decisions.’
The Roadmap reasons that Australia’s increasing reliance on renewable energy (so as to reach net zero emissions by 2050) will require it to invest in and develop more renewable energy storage technologies. These include storage technologies involving electrochemical processes (for example, batteries), machines (for example, pumped hydro energy storage), chemicals (for example, green hydrogen storage) and thermal processes (for example, molten salts). Of particular concern is the need for greater investment in respect of developing short and medium term electricity storage options, green hydrogen carriers, and thermal energy storage systems.
Relevantly, the Roadmap identifies a number of challenges which must be overcome to support decarbonisation and the deployment of renewable energy. These include challenges relating to:
- insufficient technology: Australia needs to rapidly develop its renewable energy storage capabilities. The Roadmap suggests that the lag in technology is because there is a limited set of bankable storage options, as well as uncertainty regarding future market design, infrastructure availability and cost;
- limited policy and regulatory frameworks: which are required to optimise the energy system and ensure certainty for stakeholders. The Roadmap argues for the introduction of novel policy and regulatory frameworks, which must address storage specifications (including for grants, tenders, standards and regulations), incentivise storage (including by way of targets and tenders), further integrate customer-owned storage into the grid, and coordinate long-term infrastructure planning and development;
- optimising export chains: required to develop a domestic hydrogen export industry; and
- implementing remote storage: including by focussing on community engagement where storage is deployed in remote communities, and eliminating mining emissions by way of long-term storage technology options.
To address these challenges, the Roadmap advocates that cooperation between governments and industry is required to accelerate the development of a pipeline of energy storage projects. The Roadmap recommends that investment must span short, medium and long-multiday storage projects. It suggests that domestic and international engagement will result in the establishment of domestic supply chains, ultimately reducing the risk and cost of renewable energy storage deployment.
The Hamilton Locke team advises across the energy project life cycle – from project development, grid connection, financing, construction, including the buying and selling of development and operating projects.
Matt Baumgurtel leads the New Energy sector team at Hamilton Locke which specialises in renewable energy, energy storage and hydrogen projects and transactions as part of the firm’s Energy, Resources, Construction and Infrastructure practice. The New Energy sector team has market-leading experience with hydrogen developments across Australian jurisdictions and are up-to-date with the latest national and international policy developments in the constantly evolving, dynamic hydrogen value chain.
For more information, please contact Hamilton Locke New Energy Partner Matt Baumgurtel.
