News & Discussion: Electricity Infrastructure

[abc]

What is it about facts that you hate? It's a matter of record that Olsen sold ETSA. It was an utterly foolish decision.

If Labor had done the same, it would have been just as foolish. However, Labor didn't. Sorry if the facts offend you.

Now, that foolish decision led directly to the closure of the Port Augusta power stations. That closure led to the price rises.

Apparently, if the Libs make a colossal blunder, we are to not only ignore it, but we are also to accept that somehow, it was all the fault of renewables? What a crock.

High prices in SA can be traced directly to the decision by Olsen to privatise ETSA. Nothing else.

ETSA was part of the fire sale to service the State Bank collapse debt... which the ALP was responsible for, if you want to go down that path zealot.
But no that did not directly lead to the closure of Port Augusta. That was the result of the Clean Energy act.

Was that the Clean Energy Act that closed down Yallourn?

Oh wait. It didn't.

Excuses, excuses.

(sigh)

[rev]

Why do you people always have to include insults in your responses to reasonable

Cry me a river mate. I believe I reported u multiple times on another thread which is now locked because of your abusive ranting

Why don't you just put him on block and forget about him?

[rubberman]

ETSA was part of the fire sale to service the State Bank collapse debt... which the ALP was responsible for, if you want to go down that path zealot.
But no that did not directly lead to the closure of Port Augusta. That was the result of the Clean Energy act.

Was that the Clean Energy Act that closed down Yallourn?

Oh wait. It didn't.

Excuses, excuses.

(sigh)

Look. Are you going to advance one logical reason for your claim of renewables being responsible for high electricity prices, or not?

Last chance.

(sigh)

[mattblack]

Why do you people always have to include insults in your responses to reasonable

Cry me a river mate. I believe I reported u multiple times on another thread which is now locked because of your abusive ranting

Why don't you just put him on block and forget about him?

Wise man.

[mattblack]

This is what small scale community batteries can do for us moving forward

Community batteries to empower residents through renewable energy

Release date: 15/03/24

Low-income and vulnerable households in Magill and Edwardstown will be among the first South Australians to benefit from lower power prices under a new community battery program.

The State Government today confirmed the sites of the two community batteries, at Tuku Wirra Reserve in Magill and Towers Terrace in Edwardstown, to service 600 eligible households.

Funded by a $1 million grant through the Commonwealth’s $200m Community Batteries for Household Solar initiative, the emPowering Magill and emPowering Edwardstown community batteries will lower annual electricity bills for eligible participants by as much as $562 a year on current figures.

The batteries will also contribute to lower emissions, support future solar installations and help stabilise the electricity grid by absorbing excess energy.

Crucially, the 150 kilowatt/405 kilowatt-hour community batteries at Magill and Edwardstown will also store excess energy from the grid when renewable energy is abundant and make it available at night, during periods of high demand or when the grid needs support.

This mirrors the way individual household solar and battery systems function, but extends the benefits of these renewable energy technologies more widely, to South Australian families who need it most.

Housing SA tenants living near the community batteries will be invited to voluntarily join the SA Virtual Power Plant (SA VPP) scheme. On joining they will sign up with Energy Locals, an Australian-owned electricity retailer.

The Energy Locals contract is currently set at 25 per cent below the Default Market Offer - for a household with average annual electricity consumption that equates to a $562 saving.

Tenants closest to the batteries will receive offers first, until the target number of 300 participant households is reached at each location.
The batteries will be operated by Tesla, which manages the SA VPP.

Construction on both sites is expected to commence in the first half of this year.

For abc's benefit and to stop him having politely affiliation fits here's the link.

https://www.premier.sa.gov.au/media-rel ... ble-energy

[Algernon]

Really not enthused by that. There are zero scale efficiencies and needless duplication of everything provided by the grid. If they must target a specific group, could have just given a straight up subsidy and gotten on with it.

[abc]

Really not enthused by that. There are zero scale efficiencies and needless duplication of everything provided by the grid. If they must target a specific group, could have just given a straight up subsidy and gotten on with it.

or a straight up rebate

smoke & mirrors situation in effect

[SBD]

Really not enthused by that. There are zero scale efficiencies and needless duplication of everything provided by the grid. If they must target a specific group, could have just given a straight up subsidy and gotten on with it.

I'm not an electrical engineer, but I understand that the transformers and other distribution and transmission infrastructure needs/needed to be changed to support electricity flowing 'backwards" from houses into the grid. this is why sometimes approval to build new rooftop solar has been delayed or denied and part of why new installations have to be able to be turned off by the network operator.

Perhaps putting local grid-scale batteries in key places either delays or avoids needing to upgrade the network to be reversible, or grid-forming inverters are needed anyway as part of that infrastructure to ensure the waveform remains stable and aligned when the flow is near zero or reversed.

Do we have anyone on here who understands and can explain whether I'm on the right track?

[rev]

They keep investing in large scale solar & wind farms, and tell us power prices will come down.
Power prices then go up, then they tell us its because of "gas", or the cost of the ageing grid repair/maintenance/upkeep work is expensive.

So why are we still relying on the grid, if the grid is ageing and extremely costly to maintain, if the technology exists to rid our selves of reliance on the grid and be self sufficient in our own homes?

They're pissing away our money, and we're no better off for it.


Going off-grid with your electricity is not illegal in Australia. It is just cost prohibitive for the majority.

[SBD]

They keep investing in large scale solar & wind farms, and tell us power prices will come down.
Power prices then go up, then they tell us its because of "gas", or the cost of the ageing grid repair/maintenance/upkeep work is expensive.

So why are we still relying on the grid, if the grid is ageing and extremely costly to maintain, if the technology exists to rid our selves of reliance on the grid and be self sufficient in our own homes?

They're pissing away our money, and we're no better off for it.


Going off-grid with your electricity is not illegal in Australia. It is just cost prohibitive for the majority.

I am not aware that I know anyone who has actually done it that I wouldn't describe as hippy or wacko. I agree it should be possible.

[rev]

They keep investing in large scale solar & wind farms, and tell us power prices will come down.
Power prices then go up, then they tell us its because of "gas", or the cost of the ageing grid repair/maintenance/upkeep work is expensive.

So why are we still relying on the grid, if the grid is ageing and extremely costly to maintain, if the technology exists to rid our selves of reliance on the grid and be self sufficient in our own homes?

They're pissing away our money, and we're no better off for it.


Going off-grid with your electricity is not illegal in Australia. It is just cost prohibitive for the majority.

I am not aware that I know anyone who has actually done it that I wouldn't describe as hippy or wacko. I agree it should be possible.

lol, well I'm not talking about some hippy commune in the sticks, but being off grid and self-sufficient as much as possible, at least for power generation and storage/usage, even water capture storage/usage, should be the way for the future for homes in this country.
I believe the idea of 'community battery storage' was floated quite a few years ago, was it in some WA development?
This is something the government run pilot. Keep it under government/public ownership.

There's a commercial running on TV these days, about the benefits of gas power stations in the network, how gas generation can just be 'switched on' when it's needed. Anyone seen it?

[bits]

They keep investing in large scale solar & wind farms, and tell us power prices will come down.
Power prices then go up, then they tell us its because of "gas", or the cost of the ageing grid repair/maintenance/upkeep work is expensive.

So why are we still relying on the grid, if the grid is ageing and extremely costly to maintain, if the technology exists to rid our selves of reliance on the grid and be self sufficient in our own homes?

They're pissing away our money, and we're no better off for it.


Going off-grid with your electricity is not illegal in Australia. It is just cost prohibitive for the majority.

I think this is exactly the point.
You should be self sufficient and you would save money.
Install solar and batteries.
You would save money and you would stop being the burden depending on the old aging infrastructure.
That is exactly the point.

[abc]

Why would anyone want to start a business in South Australia?

https://x.com/7NewsAdelaide/status/1769 ... 22276?s=20

[SBD]

Why would anyone want to start a business in South Australia?

https://x.com/7NewsAdelaide/status/1769 ... 22276?s=20

That felt like a political attack ad, far enough out from the general election that they don't want to propose solutions in case the current government has time to implement them.

I couldn't work out why the "small business" in the example was removing her stock from the fridge before turning it off. Did she over-produce and the excess is being chucked out, or is she letting stuff warm up that will be cooled again tomorrow when she turns her fridge back on? Electricity prices seemed to being blamed as a proxy for poor stock management or demand forecasting. Perhaps she should make less, and accept that some days she can knock off early because she sold out of the day's stock.

[abc]

Why would anyone want to start a business in South Australia?

https://x.com/7NewsAdelaide/status/1769 ... 22276?s=20

That felt like a political attack ad, far enough out from the general election that they don't want to propose solutions in case the current government has time to implement them.

I couldn't work out why the "small business" in the example was removing her stock from the fridge before turning it off. Did she over-produce and the excess is being chucked out, or is she letting stuff warm up that will be cooled again tomorrow when she turns her fridge back on? Electricity prices seemed to being blamed as a proxy for poor stock management or demand forecasting. Perhaps she should make less, and accept that some days she can knock off early because she sold out of the day's stock.

Channel 7 is generally pro Labour

South Australia has the highest energy prices is a fact.