| Project Detail |
The The Australian National University (ANU) will produce a comprehensive atlas of potential pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) development sites in Australia to increase variable wind and solar generation. Need The Short Term Off-River Energy Storage Stage 2 (STORES 2) project acknowledges that as more intermittent renewables come online, there is a growing need for energy storage to keep the electricity grid stable. This project aims to reduce barriers to developing PHES projects in Australia and thereby support increasing levels of variable wind and solar energy. Action Building on the previous Atlas of Pumped Hydro Energy Storage project, the ANU will complete and publish a comprehensive atlas of every favourable, potential upper and lower PHES reservoir in Australia. It will pair and characterise each reservoir (upper and lower) in detail including latitude, longitude, elevation, head, energy storage, water area, water volume, average water depth, shape of the reservoir, shape of the dam wall, amount of rock needed for the dam wall, dam length and water-rock ratio. The ANU will provide shape files, KML files, map files and other information, and provide extensive data searching capability. The ANU will then classify the most favourable PHES sites into capital cost classes, providing sufficient confidence to proceed to pre-feasibility. Outcome The Short Term Off-River Energy Storage Stage 2 project helps potential developers find PHES sites and reduces the time and cost of pre-feasibility evaluation. It also provides government agencies and the Australian Energy Market Operator with an accurate and reliable view of PHES sites in Australia. An increase in energy storage in Australia will ultimately allow a greater penetration of renewable electricity into our electricity networks. |
