Community Battery Locations
This page is preliminary…..
Suggested Criteria from Yarra Energy Foundation
a solar cluster along a power line
constrained network in that area
nearby park or other communal area
keen community interest
strong council support on climate change
Community battery sites - types to consider
This section outlines possible types of environments which could possibly be included in the first dozen sites, to be representative of typical environments in the Noosa LGA, and other South East Queensland LGAs.
residential feeder with high PV penetration, limits on exports, high voltages and solar switching off - a nice spot, well located near a dense cluster of solar owners where you could put a battery
residential feeder in a growth area with an overloaded transformer and possible willing future solar owners
commercial feeder (eg shopping street) with a number of customers who would value emergency supply and could increase their solar if there was a battery
tackling the limits in the industrial estates
a rural feeder with a real need for emergency supply - ie put the battery behind the meter at the community building or school, but run it with an intention to trade power with everyone on the same feeder
ditto but for a community building in Noosa
An EV focused proposal, where the location is chosen for promoting vehicle charging but the battery does all the other things too.
[Comments from YEF] I have numbered Heather’s suggestions. All options being equal, my preference is #1. We have a rule of thumb of only picking an area with current high solar penetration because there is data available and it helps size the battery. #2 is a fall back. You can combine #1 with #7. If I started our North Fitzroy project today I would do that. I think #6 or #3 should be in the plans. An anchor customer case is a valuable model that can convince other “estates” to jump in, hence replicability. I think #4 if MV-connected gives you access to larger systems and potential market participation out-right. In this case your ownership and operating models and top value streams are clearly defined and market-focused. My concern with #5 if I understand it well, is that it may benefit fewer people. Ideally the battery serves densely populated areas because there are more customers and the LV networks are geographically smaller, i.e. less voltage drop and more risk of inverters tripping.
Some suggested Sites as per Grant Proposal
Sites for batteries
specify criteria for site selection
identify and qualify candidate sites based on above criteria
also refer to the section on draft site selection criteria
examples where there is nascent support
Noosa Council - Wallace Park precinct, Sunrise Beach shops
Peregian Beach Energy Hub (proposed by working group)
Elysium residential estate (proposed by Elysium Body Corporate)
Village of Cooran (proposed by Cooran Earth Rights)
Noosa Junction - Sunshine Beach Road shopping precinct (proposed by local businesses, new solar is constrained for export)
Community Title Schemes - eg community of townhouses with dedicated distribution transformer (proposed by residents)
Residential areas with every high solar PV adoption, eg Cooroy (proposed by residents)
Boreen Point and other hinterland townships (anecdotal evidence of power instability)
Semi-industrial areas where many solar installations are constrained for export (proposed by businesses)
Areas in the Energex network which are “constrained”
Proposed new sporting developments
McKinnon Drive Sports area
Pirates Rugby proposed development
Cooroy Sports complex
Village of Pomona (proposed by a Councillor)
MapS
Energex Map
You can use this map to find out if a location being considered for a community battery might be suitable.
Once the file has downloaded click on the file to view in your browser.
Instructions for how to use to follow…….
Noosa Council Maps
The Noosa Council mapping services are useful to identify land zoning and Council owned parcels of land.
Go to Noosa Council Mapping Services
The Property item is probably the most useful.
APVI Solar Installations Map
The Australian PhotoVoltaic Institute publishes maps of solar penetration by postcode and LGA.
This map is useful to identify postcode areas with high solar PV installed. This can be used as a starting point to find areas on Low Voltage feeders where there is likely to be high solar in a street.
Google Earth
The latest satellite images on Google Earth for the Noosa region look to be from August 2021.
You can view recent satellite views in a browser version of Google Earth.
Invite feedback and new suggestions
Could include a Form or Email link…..
Power Oracle Suggestions
My Advice on Site Selection would be an awareness of the following criteria.
1. Site is acceptable to Council for a Lease Agreement.
2. PAP recommendation is 5 sqm? for EV charging equipment, however the potential site should also consider vehicle enter and exit.
3. Check proposed locations are within close proximity to the Energex LV network.
4. Check proposed locations are in the vicinity of a heavy solar population.
I recall a maximum (20) potential locations would be more than sufficient for the PAP Feasibility Study.
Further Suggestions from YEF
10-20 community batteries is a good intention. There is also a choice to make: 1/ try different models like Heather suggested below and see what works best, and 2/ pick one or two and replicate as much as possible. The latter will allow you to make an impact quicker. Also, considering that network charges are the biggest part of electricity bills, once Energex have agreed to a set of battery & customer tariffs, it will be much easier to predict which models will fly and which will not.
LV or MV, anchor customer or not, is more a function of the low hanging fruit. So for example picking up on Annie’s point that if Noosa council is keen to be an anchor customer and there are a lot of buildings with solar, it could be rapidly replicated. More on this below.
A chosen location will give you the data that makes it real. We can do generic studies but it is less convincing. As far as how to select a location, my suggestion is as I think Heather related below high solar penetration because it overwhelms the network and the battery can only be good news to the network no matter the size. The local community would need to be on board as well, but that you will only find out later. If it is a “nice” and accessible location for the public to visit and be inspired, you will get a lot more mileage on your first installation.
How do you find it? If Energex cannot provide the top locations, we use NearMap to identify suitable neighbourhoods with lots of PV panels. Since you have an interactive online facility – lucky you! – you can then match the solar clusters with LV feeders, and the greatest match wins! It can take some time to explore the neighbourhoods but that’s how I would do it.