{"id":78082,"date":"2023-08-17T11:09:31","date_gmt":"2023-08-17T01:39:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=78082"},"modified":"2023-08-17T11:09:31","modified_gmt":"2023-08-17T01:39:31","slug":"solar-ev-integration-sa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/solar-ev-integration-sa\/","title":{"rendered":"SA’s $98 Million Solar And EV Integration Plan: A Model For Australia?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"SAPNs<\/p>\n

SA Power Networks (SAPN) expects to spend $97.8 million integrating home solar PV and large loads such as electric vehicles into its network in the five years 2025-2030.<\/p>\n

That figure emerged in the distributor\u2019s draft regulatory proposal<\/a>, which is open for consultation until the end of the month. It offers an interesting insight into trends that all Australian electricity distribution networks will grapple with over the medium term.<\/p>\n

Solar Power Integration<\/h2>\n

The lion\u2019s share of SAPN\u2019s spend is $76.8 million for solar power integration.<\/p>\n

SAPN wants permission to upgrade both its network capacity and the systems managing that capacity, so customers can export solar electricity while maintaining acceptable service levels. SAPN’s world-leading flexible solar exports<\/a>\u00a0mechanism will play a big role.<\/p>\n

South Australia currently has 350,000 rooftop solar systems<\/a> and 40,000 solar batteries<\/a>. SAPN describes the challenge of so much rooftop solar:<\/p>\n

“As rooftop solar continues to grow in the 2025-30 period, however, reverse power flows during mild, sunny weather will exceed the capacity of our network assets across many parts of the network, particularly in the low voltage (LV) network.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The distributor claims 98 percent of its customers get to export solar energy 95 percent of the time \u2013 exports are only curtailed 5 percent of the time.\u00a0However, with no investment, curtailment will rise, the draft regulatory proposal warns.<\/p>\n

So the proposal asks that SA Power Networks can invest in upgrades to address \u201cemerging constraints\u201d on its low voltage network, to improve voltage and increase the export capacity for around 150,000 customers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe costs of this program are expected to be broadly aligned to the customer benefits expected by applying the AER Customer Export Curtailment Value\u201d,<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

…the proposal said.<\/p>\n

In plain English: the investment should have minimal impact on customer electricity bills.<\/p>\n

Electric Cars On The Rise<\/h2>\n

SAPN expects that by 2030, there will be 250,000 electric vehicles<\/a> (EVs) on South Australia’s roads that will charge from rooftop solar panels<\/a> and\/or the grid.<\/p>\n

\"ev<\/p>\n

Homes Getting Off Gas<\/h2>\n

In addition, SAPN expects increased demand as households shift their hot water and cooking from gas to electric.<\/p>\n

“In recent years demand on our network has seen relatively little growth due to the widespread uptake of rooftop PV. This has seen investment in the capacity of our network at much lower levels than in earlier decades. While the uptake of PV is expected to continue, this will be more than offset by the increasing demand from electric vehicles and electrification of homes.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"AEMO

Electricity demand in South Australia is forecast to increase after years of stagnation due to EVs and household electrification.<\/p><\/div>\n

Dynamic Operating Envelopes<\/h2>\n

Second, SAPN also wants to invest $15 million, around 15 percent of the CER integration budget, supporting Dynamic Operating Envelopes (DOEs) \u2013 the ability to manage import and export for customer resources.<\/p>\n

DOE appears to be a fancy term for:<\/p>\n