Could cheap, plentiful supplies of renewable energy give Australian manufacturers an edge? Around the world, industrial energy users are embracing renewable energy. Global giants IKEA, Lego, Apple and Coca Cola are amongst hundreds of companies blazing a trail, making the RE100 pledge to power their operations entirely with renewables. Closer to home more Australian manufacturers are seeing the benefits of cheap, dependable power - from food producers, to remote mine operators and even companies that produce chemicals in massive volumes. In the final episode of this season of ReWired, we speak to one of the local businesses leading the way, trading their LPG powered boiler with a Danish-made biomass system. We hear from a Queensland business refining liquid fuels from waste products, and some now familiar voices help to put the bioenergy opportunity into context. Stay up to date ARENA Rewired: Solving the Energy Puzzle is available wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe now so you get a notification when new episodes are released. While this is the final episode in this season, we hope to release more episodes soon. You can help us grow the podcast by sharing it with your friends, family and colleagues, and let us know what you think on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.      

Rewired

New age for industry, powered by renewable energy

One of Australia’s oldest and most prolific methods of generating energy is poised to transform the electricity network - again. In this episode of ReWired we take a deep dive into one of the oldest energy storage technologies - pumped hydro. More than a century on from the establishment of the Tasmanian Hydro-Electric Department, new hydro projects are being developed as part of work to prepare for a future powered by renewables. In this episode, we hear from Hydro Tasmania CEO Steve Davy about the vision for the island state to become a national powerhouse. Chief Scientist Alan Finkel and AEMO CEO Audrey Zibelman share their insights into how pumped hydro will fit into the future energy mix, and ARENA CEO Darren Miller outlines some of the work underway to help this technology become commercial. How could it work? While the technology that underpins pumped hydro is not new, there are only a few working systems around the country. The two biggest projects in the pipeline - Snowy 2.0 and Tasmania’s Battery of the Nation - have a collective capacity of about 4500 MW. According to Snowy Hydro, the 2000 MW Snowy 2.0 pumped hydro facility could power three million homes for more than a week when operating at full capacity.  The large output and long duration makes pumped hydro well suited to complement large-scale renewables, with the capacity to store energy from windy and sunny periods for when generation drops. One challenge is sending electricity from remote sites suited to large-scale pumped hydro facilities to distant population centres where it is needed. Tasmania’s plan to build the “Battery of the Nation” to bolster the National Electricity Market has a particularly big hurdle to overcome - Bass Strait. With the existing BassLink interconnector at capacity, work is underway to advance the plan for a second connection to the mainland. The business case for the proposed “Marinus Link” is well-developed and the second interconnector is on track to enter service as soon as 2027. Stay up to date ARENA Rewired: Solving the Energy Puzzle is available wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe now so you get a notification when new episodes are released. You can help us grow the podcast by sharing it with your friends, family and colleagues, and let us know what you think on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Back to the future with pumped hydro energy storage

Is it possible for wind and solar to supply reliable, dependable electricity day or night, regardless of the weather? One of the biggest criticisms of renewable energy has been the simple fact that the output of wind and solar farms can vary depending on the weather and time of day. When renewables made up a small part of the generation mix, that variability wasn’t a big problem. But as wind and solar do more of the heavy lifting, it is vital that we find ways to store energy for those times when less energy is being generated. In this episode of ReWired: Solving the Energy Puzzle, we look at one of the newest - and most headline grabbing - large-scale storage technologies. Just like the AA cells that historically powered devices like transistor radios, massive battery banks today store energy in electric vehicles and increasingly offer a way to support the electricity grid. Hear Edify Energy CEO John Cole tell us about the 25 MW / 50 MWh battery they have installed alongside their solar farm at Gannawarra in northern Victoria.  Australian Energy Market Operator CEO Audrey Zibelman shares her perspective on the role storage technologies like batteries have a role to play 'firming' the variable output of wind and solar farms, and helping to keep the lights on. We also hear from Climateworks CEO Anna Skarbek, who believes that batteries will be an important part of the future energy portfolio. She shares her belief that flagship projects like the Hornsdale Power Reserve in South Australia provide a glimpse of the future and help to shift the conversation around the energy transition. Stay up to date ARENA Rewired: Solving the Energy Puzzle is available wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe now so you get a notification when new episodes are released. You can help us grow the podcast by sharing it with your friends, family and colleagues, and let us know what you think on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Storing renewable energy in the world’s biggest batteries

Could the most common element in the universe be the key to a future powered by renewables? In this episode of ReWired, we explore how renewable hydrogen could be poised for its moment in the sun. While the potential of hydrogen has been understood for decades, the emergence of electrolyser technology - powered by affordable and plentiful energy from the wind and sun - is a potential game-changer. The opportunity is massive. Just as Australia's resources have underpinned global industry for generations, hydrogen could allow us to export our riches of wind and solar energy as the world works to decarbonise. Opportunities beyond our borders One country that sees a bright future for hydrogen is Germany. In this episode, Managing Director of the German Energy Agency Kristina Haverkamp tells us that Germany won't be able to produce enough hydrogen to meet their future demand. Describing hydrogen as one of a suite of renewable, synthetic ‘powerfuels’, she believes it will be an important alternative to direct electrification in the pathway to a future powered by renewables. Where do we start Producing hydrogen with an electrolyser costs more than fossil fuel alternatives today, but ARENA is working hard to make the emerging technology commercial. As well as investing $70 million into a new funding round, ARENA is supporting massive ammonia users like explosives manufacturer Dyno Nobel to explore whether it is possible to transition to using a renewable hydrogen feedstock. Incitec Pivot’s Vice President of Strategic Project Development Darren Jarvis told us these projects offer a pathway towards the vision of a hydrogen export industry. We also hear from ATCO’s Head of Innovation Sam Lee Mohan, who tells us about their work to blend renewable hydrogen into existing natural gas pipelines.  Stay up to date Rewired: Solving the Energy Puzzle is available wherever you listen to podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe now so you get a notification when new episodes are released. You can help us grow the podcast by sharing it with your friends, family and colleagues, and let us know what you think on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.  

Renewable hydrogen prepares for take off

Electric vehicles are finally breaking into the mainstream, but is Australia’s electricity network ready for them? Australia’s EV journey has started slowly. But with more models available than ever before and fast charging networks under construction, for many they are becoming a viable alternative. In this episode of ReWired, experts share their perspective on why you should consider an EV for your next car. Learn about work underway to make sure the electricity grid can cope with a growing fleet of electricity hungry vehicles, and hear from the people building new charging networks. We even hear how the landscape is transforming in Germany, where the first car was built nearly 135 years ago. Subscribe now ARENA Rewired: Solving the Energy Puzzle is available now. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe now so you get a notification when new episodes are released. You can help us grow the podcast by sharing it with your friends, family and colleagues, and let us know what you think on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Together in electric dreams? Renewable energy hits the road with EVs

We are pleased to bring you the third season of ARENA's podcast, ReWired: Solving the Energy Puzzle. We begin inside a net zero emissions home overflowing with renewable energy technology. Hear what inspired the owners to reimagine the modern Australian home to create and consume energy as efficiently as possible.  We speak to energy leaders about the challenge of integrating the array of behind the meter technologies into a grid designed last century. AEMO CEO Audrey Zibelman and Australia's Chief Scientist Dr Alan Finkel explain some of the ways these hurdles are being overcome, and share a vision for how the network might work in the future. And ARENA CEO Darren Miller introduces the game-changing distributed energy projects that ARENA is supporting, like Melbourne startup Allume, which is breaking down barriers to solar for apartments and other multi-metered buildings. Your support made the first two seasons a huge success. Help us to grow the show by sharing it with your networks, and joining in the conversation on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

The energy revolution in our homes

As we enter a new decade, ARENA is launching season three of our podcast ReWired. Together we will look at the different pieces of Australia’s energy puzzle, and learn how they might come together in a future powered by renewables.  Over six episodes, energy experts and innovators will explore a wide range of topics - the role of large-scale storage in balancing the grid, the transition to a consumer-driven energy system, and the electric vehicle revolution driving us to a more sustainable transport system.  We will look at the state of Australia’s hydrogen industry, and hear how energy intensive industries are becoming more efficient and embracing renewables.  You made the first two seasons of ReWired a massive success, and inspired us to share more of the important stories about Australia’s shift to renewable energy. Find out more at www.arena.gov.au/blog. 

Introducing our new series - Solving Australia’s Energy Puzzle

Isolated from mainland Tasmania and at the mercy of the elements, the residents of Flinders Island have always prided themselves on their self-reliance. We take a trip across the Bass Strait as Hydro Tasmania's new Hybrid Energy Hub kicks in to gear to find out how the shift away from diesel generation to renewables will affect lives. Dewi Cooke meets some of the locals and hears how this small island has lived with intermittent electricity for years, while Adam Morton gets the lowdown on the Hub from Hydro Tasmania's manager of Hybrid Energy Solutions, Ray Massie.

My Island Home: A postcard from Flinders Island

How many times would people tell you 'no' before you believed you couldn't? For Telstra Energy's Nada Kalam, the first time someone told her that 'girls can't do engineering' was in high school - and it's lit a fire under her ever since.In this episode of The Innovators we explore a recognised issue within the energy industry: women's representation. And, as an energy systems engineer with one of Australia's biggest energy consumers, Nada shares how Telstra is using renewable technology to fortify its assets and reduce energy costs.For more information on the Women in Renewables pledge or to read the report on corporate renewables, go to arena.gov.au/blog.

Party of One: Nada Kalam

Virtual power plants and digital energy marketplaces. These are the intangible, unseen elements of the energy revolution yet they're central to Bruce Thompson's working life. But 20 years ago, Thompson was just a keen-eyed engineering student concerned about the environment and "this thing called climate change". A former activist and director of major projects at the Moreland Energy Foundation Limited (MEFL), he's been able to ride the wave of interest in environmental concern over the decades as issues that were once considered fringe have hit the mainstream. Now he's at energy software company GreenSync and is helping drive Australia's first open, digital marketplace for renewable energy, dEx. In this episode of The Innovators, Thompson takes us on a journey from his days as a community campaigner in the Top End and how he applies what he learned to his current role as head of product strategy at GreenSync. For more, go to arena.gov.au/blog

Hello From The Outside: Bruce Thompson, GreenSync

In 2016, Katerina Kimmorley was working in India with her solar energy social enterprise, Pollinate Energy, bringing real, tangible change to the lives of thousands of people living without electricity in India's urban slums. So what brought her home after years away to the world of venture capital and renewable energy start-ups? In this episode we hear about her journey to the helm of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation's Innovation Fund where she has a front row seat to Australia's energy revolution, and where she sees the future of renewables heading. For more information on the work of the fund and the projects she mentions go to arena.gov.au/blog or cefc.com.au

A lightbulb moment: Katerina Kimmorley

Sometimes, life doesn't work out as you'd expect. Sometimes, what might seem like a failure is actually an opportunity for success. In this episode of The Innovators you'll meet two scientists whose own failed lab experiment led them to something, arguably, more exciting. In early 2017, RMIT University academics Torben Daeneke and Kourosh Kalantar Zadeh released details of a "solar paint", one that uses the power of the sun to generate hydrogen from moisture in the air. With hydrogen a potential source of renewable energy and countries such as South Korea and Japan shifting to a hydrogen-based future, could their discovery have implications for how we use hydrogen going forward? For more on the future potential of hydrogen, go to arena.gov.au/blog

Paint me a picture: Torben Daeneke and Kourosh Kalantar Zadeh

In the first episode of our new series of ReWired: The Innovators, Adam Morton meets Dr Jemma Green - a former investment banker, entrepreneur and, most recently, interim mayor of the City of Perth. She's also co-founder of energy trading start-up PowerLedger, which stormed through its Initial Coin Offering earlier this year and raised $34 million for its platform allowing electricity consumers to receive and trade energy with power companies, and each other. Jemma talks of the demise of a century-old dynamic where energy consumers were at the end of a long line of service delivery, one that is being replaced, instead, with a "democratisation of power" where the user is King. In this fascinating conversation, Green describes the many and varied paths she's taken to get to PowerLedger, from investment firms in London to the Camino de Santiago in Spain, and her vision for a future driven by "citizen utilities". And yes, blockchain gets a mention, too. For more info, go to arena.gov.au/blog or find us on Facebook.

Power to the People: Jemma Green

Australia is in the midst of an energy revolution and The Innovators wants to take you to the cutting edge of it. It's a place of hydrogen-producing solar paint, of virtual power plants and energy cryptocurrencies. It's a place of pure innovation and leadership, sparked by individuals with a renewable energy future in their sights and, often, extraordinary stories of their own to tell. Yes, between the politics, the market and the consumer, there's a lot of noise distorting the energy debate right now. We want to cut through that with stories of world-leading technology, bold ideas, the value of persistence and would you believe it, the motivating force of failure. Hosted by Adam Morton, The Innovators is a six-part series and is the second of the Rewired podcasts powered by ARENA, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. Find out more at www.arena.gov.au/blog

Introducing our new series, The Innovators

Welcome to all the new listeners downloading ReWired since Apple Podcasts featured the show as New & Noteworthy.   If you've already heard the series please subscribe to get new episodes in the future, and leave a review on iTunes.   If you'd like to know anymore informationa about renewable energy projects around Australia visit ARENA.gov.au  

hubhopper

Rewired

hubhopper