Commercial Scale Inverter Energy System Integration Workshop

Peter Bulanyi – CTO at Si Clean Energy – will be presenting at this workshop with the Clean Energy Council in Brisbane on August 16th. Using his considerable experience and knowledge of the renewable energy industry he will cover the challenges faced, what options are there, and how Si Clean Energy have a new partnership with Ingeteam having identified a power export control product that may help this particular challenge in the industry.

Over recent years rapid growth in domestic solar PV has brought with it a very steep learning curve. With over 2 GW of small scale PV now installed across Australia an increased understanding of this new technology has led distributors and the wider industry to identify and manage many of the challenges which have, at times been seen as significant barriers.

Decreasing government incentives and an ever evolving cost profile of photovoltaic technologies is expected to extend the industry focus to larger commercial PV installations. In this new scenario a new driver has appeared where increasing power prices are giving cause for larger energy users to seek alternative energy sources in an attempt to supplement their operating costs.

The potential for growth in the commercial scale embedded generation sector is significant. There is an expectation that the tried and tested approach for plant standards, such as AS 4777, to be applied may no longer be reasonable as system sizes increase into the tens and hundreds of kW.

As with the emergence of domestic PV the early stage issues which appear significant now can likely be managed with the appropriate technical, regulatory and policy settings. In order to achieve this however it is crucial that the industry is transparent and challenges are managed effectively and consistently prior to the emergence of barriers as generator capacities move outside of the well understood AS 4777 standard.

In some jurisdictions challenges may have progressed already. However, there is an opportunity for industry-wide attention to identify and resolve challenges.

This workshop is designed to bring together electricity industry stakeholders to discuss and understand the challenges and issues faced by the ongoing expansion of commercial scale inverter-connected energy systems across Australian distribution networks.

Date and Venue: 16th August, Brisbane, DLA Piper Australia, Waterfront Pace, Eagle Street.