Australia can lead the world on renewable energy: Tesla chair Robyn Denholm
Tesla chair and ex-Telstra exec Robyn Denholm says Australia can lead the world on renewable energy.
Tesla’s recently appointed chair, Robyn Denholm, says Australia can lead the world on renewable energy as prices fall and new technologies allow consumers to link rooftop solar with batteries, connecting homes through a virtual power grid.
Ms Denholm became Tesla chair last November as part of a corporate governance deal Elon Musk struck with US regulators over tweets he sent about taking the company into private ownership.
The former Telstra finance chief described herself as a “technology optimist” who backs Australia to remain at the cutting edge of the transition to renewables.
“I truly believe that we as a nation are at the tipping point of having sustainable energy solutions that are better for the environment but even more importantly are better from an economic point of view,” Ms Denholm told the Clean Energy Summit in Sydney today. “And in my experience, it’s the only way that technology advancements really endure by those that provide the right economic outcome for consumers and also for the industry.”
The Australian executive, a Tesla non-executive director since 2014, also told the conference she drives a red Tesla Model S — dubbed the Ladybug — and runs a 9 kilowatt solar system on the rooftop of her 100-year old home along with a Powerwall battery for storage.
“Driving on sunshine is a really great experience,” Ms Denholm said.
Tesla has played a small but critical role helping ease Australia’s energy crisis after rolling out the world’s biggest battery in South Australia as part of a 100-day bet with tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes to plug a supply gap that caused volatility in the state.
It’s since partnered with the South Australian government to develop a ‘virtual power plant’ network of up to 50,000 homes connecting household solar and batteries together to lower energy prices and provide protection during a grid outage.
Tesla’s latest innovation released yesterday called the Megapack is a utility scale energy storage product that aims to provide an alternative to gas ‘peaker’ plants which are switched on at times of peak demand.