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Half of energy used in the state of Western Australia is off-grid
- toomuchtodo 5y agoSo this only tells half the story. While it's true that mining operations in Western Australia are moving rapidly to renewables due to the cost savings, a lot of the distribution grid is reaching it's end of life in Western Australia (SWIS), and the grid authority has determined that it's cheaper to build out microgrids versus replace existing distribution infra [1] [2] [3]. Big wins all around. I'd be shocked if renewables and hydro weren't providing 90%+ of Australia's power by 2030, and they haven't even touched geothermal resources that could be colocated near utility scale renewables to maximize transmission utilization (at least until long duration storage comes down in price). [1] https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2021/10/19/state-owned-utility-reveals-desire-to-disconnect-rural-town-from-grid/ https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2021/10/19/state-owned... [2] https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2021/08/20/western-power-ready-to-welcome-microgrid-to-energy-mix/ https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2021/08/20/western-pow... [3] https://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/taylor/media-releases/delivering-cheap-and-reliable-energy-western-australia https://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/taylor/media-...
- aussieguy1234 5y agoHere in Tasmania, power is already 100% renewable, mostly from hydro.