The New South Wales (NSW) government has announced that it will support the construction of a new $ 100. One million (US $ 78 million) batteries as part of a plan to replace power generation after the Liddell coal-fired power plant was scheduled to close in 2023.
This decision was made in the midst of NSW’s recent power grid instability, which forced one of Australia’s largest aluminum smelters. Turn off the power several times a month After power shortages and energy prices soared 18,000 percent.
“The Government of New South Wales is the state’s second largest energy customer,” said the Minister of Energy and Environment of New South Wales. Media release.. “This battery helps keep costs down and bring more renewable energy online during peak energy hours.”
But the government doesn’t pay to build batteries. Instead, it gave Edify and Shell Energy a $ 3.2 billion ($ 2.5 billion) worth of 10-year electricity contracts.
Electricity contracts are a way to encourage companies to invest in energy infrastructure by prepaying electricity rates, and the NSW state government says $ 3.2 billion will cover electricity rates for government buildings over the next decade. I’m estimating.
The battery, also known as the Libarian Energy Storage System, is located next to Murun Busy Shire in southwestern New South Wales. Darlington Point Solar Farm..
A storage system capable of supplying 100 MW (megawatts) of electricity powers government buildings such as schools, hospitals, correctional facilities and public service buildings.
The system has a storage capacity of 200 MW h (megawatt hour). Here, 1 MW h of storage is equivalent to 1 MW of electricity that can be supplied for 1 hour. This means that the system can stay up and running for a total of 2 hours when outputting at up to 100 MW.
Former federal government Announcement To protect the next supply and energy costs, we need to develop a capacity of 1,000 MW. Liddell closure And an outlet for 1,680 MW of dispatchable power.
Battery also joins NSW’s recently announced 660MW Gas-fired power plant, Australia’s first Gas-hydrogen hybrid power plant..
However, unlike their predecessors, batteries are powered by renewable energies such as wind and solar. Previous gas-based power plants were strongly criticized by environmental groups who believed that carbon-producing resources should be completely reduced.
“The Morrison government should not pour taxpayer money into gas and make long-term plans around the industry driving climate change.” Said A spokesman for the Climate Council. “Gas has already been defeated by clean, affordable renewables.”
However, after repeated power outages at the Tomago Aluminum Smelter, Tomago CEO Matt Howell said a consistent, long-term power supply was important.
“No one argues that energy systems should move to cleaner energy sources. We are actively pursuing renewable energies such as wind, solar and hydropower,” Howell said. Said. The Daily Telegraph.. “But especially in winter, the fact remains that there is no dispatchable generation, there is a significant portion of the day and night.”
“To say that a battery can replace a lidel is like saying that a bicycle can replace a car.”
2018 report (pdf) Outlined the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s replacement of Liddell as a “significant” difference between energy and electricity.
by Solar quarts On websites, energy represents the amount of electricity stored, and electricity is the speed at which energy flows.
The NSW battery can output at 100 MW, but since it only stores 200 MW h, it can only output for 2 hours. This means a windless night. Batteries can only be discharged for a limited amount of time before their supply is exhausted.