CONSTRUCTION on the planned community battery in Carrum Downs is expected to begin next year.
The battery will be installed by United Energy, which was handed a $500,000 grant from the federal government to undertake the project. It says construction on the 120kW/360kWh begins next year, and that it will be operational by early 2025.
United Energy electricity networks general manager Mark Clarke said the battery would produce enough power to supply 23 average Australian homes for 12 months.
“The battery will help keep locally generated solar power local,” he said. “It will allow more homes and businesses to connect and export excess solar from their systems back into the grid, where it can be stored and used at peak times when it’s needed most. The additional solar export capacity created by this battery can displace electricity from the wider grid and reduce carbon emissions by 101 tonnes each year, which is about the same as taking 23 cars off the road.
“Traditionally, we would upgrade or replace power infrastructure to support higher growth, now we are also using batteries as another option to help to reduce costs for all customers. We expect community and neighbourhood-scale batteries will become more common on our networks in the future to ensure we help deliver the targeted levels of 95 percent renewable energy generation by 2035.”