New Bargara battery substation connects to grid

The Bundaberg region has cemented its position as a clean energy hot spot, with three new lithium batteries capturing the region’s solar power officially launched.

As the number one postcode in Australia for solar panels, the Bundaberg region has welcomed a new battery substation to collect locally sourced renewable energy.

The new Bargara battery substation officially went online on Monday, September 26, with three new four megawatt Tesla batteries joining the grid.

The lithium batteries will absorb the solar energy collected by Wide Bay residents, and ration it out to the connected areas at times most needed.

The batteries will power 500 homes for up to 24 hours, and are one of five sites built and connected across the state.

Ergon Energy spokesman Mitch Anderson said as more and more people invested in renewable energies, energy consumption changed.

“Consumption has shifted from day time to night time consumption as more people come home and charge all of their devices overnight, including electric cars,” he said.

Mitch Anderson of Ergon Energy and Oliver Durieu of Yurika – Energy Queensland in front of the Bargara batteries.

Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman said the Bargara site would allow the Wide Bay residents who have added solar panels to their homes to have better access to the energy they collect.

“This region has one of the largest take-ups of solar panels on roofs in the Southern Hemisphere. That power will be stored locally and used locally when we need it most,” she said.

The project took six months to reach completion and provided more than 50 jobs to locals and travelling crews, with the energy saved by the new site being used to power homes from Bundaberg to Hervey Bay.

Hervey Bay MP Adrian Tantari said Hervey Bay was halfway through a battery project of its own, which would take the pressure off of the new Bargara site.

The site aims to contribute to the State Government’s 2030 goal for 50 per cent renewable energy.

Bundaberg MP Tom Smith said projects such as the Battery Blitz, including Bargara’s new station would allow jobs to transition away from fossil fuels and into cleaner renewable energy.

“We will have clean energy being built by those in high-vis and hard hats who are being put to work building the energy of tomorrow,” he said.

Originally published as New Bargara battery substation connects to grid