A report from the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), the country’s authority on electricity, has concluded that Australia’s power grid will stay stable during the transition to renewables.
However, the operator states that the stability will only be maintained if investments in clean energy sources are secured “on time and in full”.
AEMO has worked out what the National Electricity Market needs to maintain itself, which impacts all five eastern states of Australia and the Australian Capital Territory.
“We know the investments there,” commented Daniel Westerman, Chief Executive of AEMO on the report. “It’s just got to get delivered in generation, in transmission, in storage.”
Australia’s renewable leaders have noted a clear decline in sustainable investment, threatening grid reliability and efforts to combat climate change. This is due to financial decisions on solar plants dropping by a third and wind farms seeing no development.
Reliability gaps and delays
Westerman emphasised that investments into solar, wind, batteries, and hydro were necessary to avoid reliability gaps in the wake of delays. Grid reliability has improved since 2023, with 5.7GW of large-scale generation and BESS, and 365km of transmission connections added.
In response to concerns, the Australian government promised to add 32GW of renewable energy and storage by 2030.
The country’s power grid is on its journey from reliance on fossil fuels to renewable sources, with solar, wind, and hydro providing 40% of the east coast’s electricity.
Last financial year saw almost double the amount of generation approved, according to Westerman, which brought 6.9GW up to 12GW. However, AEMO warns that 6GW is needed to meet Australia’s clean energy target by 2030.
The news comes as the Australian Coalition pledges to focus on developing nuclear plants and using gas fuel rather than investing in clean energy. Nuclear power is currently banned in Australia, with research showing that a plant approved now could not be online before 2040.
