South Australia to double Adelaide city incentives for battery storage

The South Australia state government says it will match funding from the Adelaide City Council to provide incentives to businesses and households that install energy storage and energy efficiency solutions, as well as solar PV.

The initiative announced by state climate change minister Ian Hunter will double the amount available for the incentives, which include $5,000 available to homes and businesses to install rooftop solar PV with battery storage (another $5,000), electric vehicle charging points ($500) and energy efficiency initiatives. (See details below).

It follows an initiative last week in which the state Government said it wanted to install battery storage on some of its key buildings in the Adelaide CBD, including Parliament House, its major art galleries and museums, and some train stations and school properties it owns.

Earlier, the Adelaide City had announced its $5,000 incentives to boost the uptake of battery storage in a city and a state that is leading Australia, and indeed the world, in the installation of rooftop solar PV.

Now it wants to lead in battery storage as well.

According to numbers crunched by the council and the state government, the combined $300,000 funding to be provided by the two bodies could result in about 600kWh of energy storage; or 1,700kW of solar PV. That compares to the 2,970kW of solar PV that is already installed in the Adelaide City area.

Based a 50 per cent rebate on battery storage (assuming a price of around $1,000kWh, that would attract $600,000 of private investment, or around $3 million of private investment in solar PV, based on 1,700kW at $1.75/watt.

The initiative has already sparked interest from battery storage suppliers, and Australian company Reposit Power has announced it will open its “Grid Credits” – which uses battery storage and smart software to trade in electricity markets – scheme to Adelaide residents.

“This commitment effectively doubles the opportunity for more people in the Adelaide city area to invest in technologies that reduce carbon emissions and energy use,” Hunter said in a statement.

“The State Government has a goal for the city of Adelaide to be carbon neutral, and this ambitious target will require a change in the way the city operates and is used.

“This will rely on creating further demand for renewable energy, growth in green industries, increased energy and waste efficiency and driving the use of cleaner modes of transport.

Hunter noted that South Australia already leads the nation with almost 40 per cent of our energy coming from variable renewable sources, wind and solar, amongst the highest in the world. The state government is aiming for 50 per cent by 2025, but in reality is likely to get there well before that.

The Sustainable City Incentives Scheme provides funding for  all building owners and tenants including businesses, residents, schools, community and sporting organisations

The state government initiative will double those incentives. Adelaide City Council Lord Mayor Martin Haese welcomed the additional funding, noting that the council has reduced its own carbon emissions by 60 per cent since 1994 and emissions from the city community have declined by 19 per cent since 2007.

“We have already seen this through the sheer number of inquiries we have received since our announcement,” he said. “Financial assistance packages such as this are essential to incentivise their decisions to invest in technologies that enable us to store solar energy and increase our energy efficiency.”