The Australian Government is providing $9.6 million funding towards integrating distributed energy resources (DER) into the electricity system, building on our commitment to investing in renewable energy projects.

DER includes behind the meter technologies such as rooftop solar PV, battery storage, electric vehicle charging points and smart appliance systems.

Through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, $7.2 million will be allocated to five pilot projects led by Zeppelin Bend, Jemena, SA Power Networks, Solar Analytics and RACV. These projects will trial new approaches to increase the capacity of networks to host DER, whilst also ensuring that systems still operate securely.

An additional seven studies will receive $2.4 million to investigate how to effectively integrate high levels of DER. These studies will help networks, retailers, government and system operators understand more about the technical and commercial challenges of managing a grid with a high penetration of DER.

The studies are being led by CitiPower and Powercor, Dynamic Limits, University of Tasmania, CSIRO, Oakley Greenwood, the Australian National University and the University of Melbourne.

The Government acknowledges the rapid evolution of energy technology and is taking advantage of these new opportunities in the electricity market to deliver affordable, 24/7 reliable power for Australian families and small businesses.

Further details on the projects and studies are available at: arena.gov.au