To boost the renewable investment and improve the new renewable energy processing, the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) and the Clean Energy Council (CEC) published the Connections Reform Roadmap. This reform aims at improving the processes for hybrid projects connecting to the National Electricity Market (NEM).
With a collaboration agreement involving more than 50 organisations in the energy business and developed over seven months, the roadmap focuses on 11 priority reforms and implementation plans. The organisations in this reform includes Clean Energy Council members, energy market bodies, network businesses, equipment manufacturers, developers and technical consultants.
The CEO of Australian Energy Market Operator, Mr Daniel Westerman said, “Australia is witnessing its biggest ever energy transition in a century and driven by record investments in wind and solar energy generation.”
The Connections Reform Initiative (CRI) is open to collaborating and co-designing reforms in the industry to address the current grid related challenges. The approved Connections Reform Roadmap ensure efficient and easy connection of renewable generation and battery storage project to the National Electricity Market.
Also, they relate to various inputs into the connection process, including:
- Information Quality
- Modelling Standards
- Assessment Studies
- Access Standards
- Other Key Elements
As per an analysis study conducted by the Clean Energy Council, the renewable development pipeline in Australia shows the private sector is ready to deploy $51.5 billion of investment.
The Chief Executive of CEC, Mr Kane Thornton, said that since 2019 grid connection and network access has been the top concern of clean energy investors. The supporters are continuously struggling with connection delays and energy regulation, fostering an environment that brings in enormous capital into the economy should be advocated.
With the development of the Connections Reform Roadmap, the industry has collaborated to work towards the energy solutions that will unlock the new generation investment and drive down the energy costs at the customer end to deliver better grid outcomes.
