Australia invests in renewable energy 11 December 2009 Australia is investing in renewable energy with four commercial-scale renewable energy projects receiving a combined government grant of $235 million. The funding, which comes from the Australian Government’s Renewable Energy Demonstration Program (REDP), will help deliver renewable generation from wave technology, geothermal, and an integrated project which involves wind, solar, biodiesel and storage technologies. - The country’s first large scale wave power technology project will be built near Portland, in south-western Victoria, by Victorian Wave Partners.
The 19MW Wave Power Demonstration Project will use Ocean Power Technologies’ PowerBuoy® system to convert ocean wave energy into useable electrical power for utility-scale grid connected applications. The system integrates patented technologies in hydrodynamics, electronics, energy conversion, and computer control systems. - Two geothermal projects – proposed by Petratherm and Geodynamics, both in South Australia – will use different technologies in different geological settings.
- An integrated mini-grid project – proposed by Hydro Tasmania – will integrate wind, solar and storage with a biodiesel generator, providing base load and peak power for Tasmania’s King Island, thereby reducing the island’s dependence on diesel generators.
More information |