Arena launches second round of federal Labor’s community battery grants

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) has put out a call for applications for a share of $46.3 million in grants to deploy community batteries across Australia.

Arena launched the second round of its Community Batteries Funding Initiative on Wednesday, opening the way for applicants to take a share in $46.3 million in funding to build batteries between 50kW and 5MW and which must be connected to the distribution network.

Eligible batteries must demonstrate community batteries, build industry capacity, and help support the integration of more rooftop solar and small-scale renewables into the grid.

During the first round of funding, Arena approved grants worth $124.7 million to support the deployment of 318 batteries in all states and the Northern Territory.

The federal government originally awarded Arena $171 million to deliver at least 342 batteries under the 2022 federal budget, which leaves $46.3 million for the second round of grants.

“Part of increasing our dependency on renewably sourced energy is the need to increase our firming technology to make sure the energy grid is secure and reliable,” said Arena CEO Darren Miller.

“We can achieve this by storing energy in batteries when renewable energy is plentiful and use this stored energy later in the day and overnight when people most need it.

“Over recent years, a concerted effort has been made in deploying batteries to support the grid and transition to clean energy. Round 2 will build on the insights, expertise and knowledge developed in Round 1, resulting in further optimisation of distributed energy resources in the electricity grid.”

More information about the second round of grants can be found here.

The second round of Arena’s Community Batteries Funding Initiative was unveiled by Chris Bowen, federal minister for climate change and energy, during a visit on Wednesday to the Springfield headquarters of the Brisbane Lions, where two Arena funded batteries will be installed. 

The two batteries are being installed by Momentum Energy, a subsidiary of Hydro Tasmania, at the Brisbane Lions’ home ground at Brighton Homes Arena, as part of 39 batteries the company is building across Queensland, South Australia, New South Wales and Victoria.

Read more about the Brisbane Lions project here.