The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has marked the installation of 100 community batteries and announced a further $23.2 million in funding for three new energy storage systems to be built under a second round of its national grants scheme.
It’s a big jump from the 22 communities batteries that ARENA said were installed by the end of last year, and 23 by the end of March, according to a study released by the agency in July.
That study did anticipate a big jump in installations by the end of the year, however.
ARENA launched the Community Batteries Funding Round 1 back in April 2023, which started with an initial $120 million to support the roll out of up to 370 community batteries across Australia.
In 2024, ARENA awarded $125 million to 318 community battery projects around the country, but as Renew Economy reported only 22 were built by the end of last year.
But in an update this week, ARENA says its funding now has supported the roll out of 113 community batteries, with the 100th officially commemorated earlier this month as part of the Horizon Power Regional WA Community Battery Deployment Project in Esperance, Western Australia.
Image Credit: ARENA
The milestone marks the growing role that community batteries are playing in helping households secure value from rooftop solar while simultaneously supporting a more reliable and flexible electricity grid. Backed by ongoing federal funding, demand for community batteries continues to demonstrate their value.
“Reaching 100 community batteries demonstrates growing confidence in the role these assets can play in Australia’s energy transition,” said Chris Faris, ARENA acting CEO.
“Community batteries help local communities make better use of rooftop solar by storing excess energy during the day and making it available when it is needed most. They can help lower costs, support greater renewable energy uptake, and improve the efficiency of the electricity network.
“Importantly, the program is also generating valuable real-world data and insights on battery performance, costs, business models, customer benefits, and grid impacts. These learnings will help accelerate the commercial deployment of community batteries across Australia.”
The Community Batteries Funding Round 2 was announced early last year, funded by $46.3 million. Building on that, Arena this week also announced a further $23.2 million in funding for several dozen new batteries across New South Wales and South Australia.
South Australian renewable energy company Yes Group secured $10.29 million to deploy 14 community batteries across regional South Australia and New South Wales.
Ausgrid, Australia’s largest distributor of electricity, was awarded $8 million to deploy 21 community batteries across Sydney, the Central Coast, and Hunter regions of NSW.
And the City of Newcastle was awarded $5 million to deploy 12 community batteries each integrated with embedded solar networks across its Local Government Area.
“Community batteries help local communities make better use of rooftop solar by storing excess energy during the day and making it available when it is needed most. They can help lower costs, support greater renewable energy uptake, and improve the efficiency of the electricity network.
“Importantly, the program is also generating valuable real-world data and insights on battery performance, costs, business models, customer benefits, and grid impacts. These learnings will help accelerate the commercial deployment of community batteries across Australia.”
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