Pumped storage batteries triple Australia's storage capacity

More than 20 pumped storage projects are in different stages of development in five Australian States, some of which are in the preliminary assessment stage and others are in the construction stage. A new study from the Australian National University (ANU) finds that if these projects continue, Australia will well build a national grid that is almost entirely dependent on renewable energy.            "It's really a game changer. "It destroys any argument that solar and wind power cannot provide the base load needed to maintain light in eastern Australia," said researcher Jamie Pittock.            When the demand is low, the pumped storage accumulators store the energy by pumping it up the slope and releasing it into the pipeline through the turbine to generate electricity when the demand is high. The best location is a pair of dams with an altitude of more than 250m, excluding residential areas, national parks and other sensitive locations.            Pittock's paper, published in the Australian environmental review, outlines the impact of the system on the environment. He said it did present some unusual challenges because people living in rural areas may not be happy to see the reservoir built on the nearest hilltop. Most importantly, because they are part of a national park or have sites of cultural significance, many of the high-altitude areas that would otherwise be suitable must be excluded. Other places are too far away from water or existing transmission lines.            But there are also some places that are very promising, such as the old gold mine under Bendigo in Victoria. They suck contaminated water up to the surface and send it back to the mines, doubling existing pumped storage plants and "green" steel mills.            "It is estimated that we need about 20 large PSH facilities to support the entire national grid. "In terms of the reliability of the electricity supply, this part is about how much risk you want to take," pitock said.            Recently, as the federal government announced plans to support two major projects, pumped energy has recently become the focus of attention. It has committed $1.38 billion to the expansion of snowy2.0 pumped hydropower and $56 million to the marinuslink project, part of the Tasmanian national battery project, which will provide a second interconnection to the bath channel to increase the availability of hydropower in the state. Resources of the mainland.            Although the analysis shows that the additional energy storage capacity is of economic significance in coal decommissioning and marinuslink has completed ahead of schedule, it is said that the potential of the pump hydropower project can only be fully utilized when it is operated in coordination with it. Renewable energy.            "Don't talk about snowy2.0 being renewable. Whenever it pumps water, it will use off peak power from our dirty power station in New South Wales today. They need to shut down, when they get tough in extreme weather, they fall down, and now it's time to enter the 21st century with renewable energy, so snowy 2.0 can really become a renewable project, "Andrew stock of the Climate Council observed in a statement.            The marinus interconnector requires the same stack. In a preliminary study, tasnetworks estimated marinuslink's capital cost to be $13-17 billion for a 600 megawatt connection, or $190-310 million for a 1200 megawatt capacity. Noting that the project is promising, arena said that in the early 1930s or as early as the mid-1920s, a second interconnector may be economically viable, depending on when existing coal-fired power stations are decommissioned.            Ben oquist, executive director of the Australian Institute of research, said: "the second interconnector with Tasmania will only be effective if the coal shut-down rate increases and emissions in the power sector decrease by more than 50%, rather than the 26% set by the government." After the capital announcement.            Marinuslink has become an early winner in underwriting a new generation of investment plans. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said they were willing to transfer taxpayer money into the project, and the Tasmanian state government has pledged $30 million for Tasmanian hydro to reduce the number of potential Internet sites from 14 to three.