Government signals it’s on board for Tesla’s virtual power plant plan

THE State Government has given its strongest indication yet that it will roll out Labor’s high profile virtual power plant pledge.

• Tesla solar partnership to deliver 500 jobs, Labor says
• 50,000 homes to get free solar panels under Labor plan
• Libs plan: Subsidies for 40,000 solar installations

THE State Government has given its strongest indication yet that it will roll out Labor’s high-profile virtual power plant pledge in full.

Energy Minister Dan van Holst Pellekaan this week told an energy storage conference that the Government would support the first two trial phases of the partnership with American firm Tesla.

He said the third stage, which would connect 50,000 home batteries to solar panels, could proceed “subject to private finance and the trial’s success”.

Energy Minister Dan van Holst Pellekaan.

The Tesla scheme would operate on top of the Government’s own election pledge — a $100 million scheme to subsidise 40,000 home batteries.

Mr van Holst Pellekaan said rolling out the huge number of home battery systems was a “complicated task”.

“I don’t think that anyone has attempted to do what we are about to do at this scale relative to population and market size,” he said.

“Very simply, a Liberal Government in SA means more, not fewer batteries, and we are also optimistic about the associated assembly and potentially manufacturing opportunities.”

SA Council of Social Services chief executive Ross Womersley said it would have been “terrific” for Mr van Holst Pellekaan to categorically commit to the full virtual power plant rollout, but he still expected the Government to do so.

The plan is funded through just $2 million of Government funding, as well as a $30 million loan.

“We’ve got one of the biggest companies in the world pledging to make a huge investment in the state at a low cost to the taxpayer,” Mr Womersley said. “The numbers look positive enough to make it worthwhile.”