Can pumped hydro grab centre stage from battery storage? Sometime in the next month or two, the first investment in what will be a significant new stage in the transition to a renewable energy dominated grid in Australia will be made. It will be confirmation of the world’s first investment in a project that co-locates, for the first time, large-scale solar with a large-scale pumped hydro storage facility – and the first example in Australia of a storage facility with vastly more storage capacity than the renewable energy source it is paired with. Storage is a new phenomenon in Australia – even though there are a handful of pumped hydro plants scattered around the main grid, from Wivenhoe in the north, to Shoalhaven and Tumut in NSW.
Renew Economy 16th Oct 2018 read more »