The State Government and the City of Busselton today officially launched the South-West’s first community battery storage system in Busselton.
The new utility-grade 464kWh Tesla battery will improve power quality and help upgrade the electricity network in the Busselton region.
The rollout of community batteries is a key action of the Distributed Energy Resources Roadmap, which was released by the Minister in April 2020.
Integrating batteries into local communities improves Western Power’s ability to balance neighbourhood load profiles during the day and allows more homes to install solar panels.
Located on Shovelboard Way, the Busselton battery is the fifth Western Power community battery, of this size, to be installed in Western Australia. Other locations include Ellenbrook (Perth), Meadow Springs and Falcon (Mandurah), and Kalgoorlie.
Later this year, Synergy will offer eligible households the opportunity to store their excess solar energy in the community battery, allowing them to optimise their energy use without having to purchase their own household battery storage system.
As stated by Energy Minister Bill Johnston:
“The McGowan Government continues to roll out community batteries, as part of its Energy Transformation Strategy, which is contributing to a greener energy future for Western Australians.
“Residents of Busselton have really embraced the sun’s energy; in the past 10 years there has been a sixfold increase of solar panels.
“The Busselton community battery will also allow residents with solar panels to store excess solar power for use during peak times.”
As stated by South West Region MLC Sally Talbot:
“This is an exciting initiative for the Busselton region and community.
“Busselton is already a leader in the solar space, with more than 4,700 rooftops featuring solar panels.”
