Regulating hydro - now and in the future Amar Rathore, General - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Regulating hydro - now and in the future

Amar Rathore, General Manager, Technical Assessment and Support, Clean Energy Regulator

Pumped hydro energy storage conference – 29 August 2017 2

The Renewable Energy Target

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Hydro – how does it work?

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Source: State of the energy market – May 2017, Australian Energy Regulator

Hydro’s role in Australia’s renewables

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Small-scale solar Large-scale solar Hydro Wind Biomass

2016 installed capacity

Hydro and the RET

• Three large existing pumped

hydro power stations

• Only electricity generated from

rainfall, melted snow and natural water flows is eligible for LGC creation

• Any electricity used in pumping

to raise water is treated as an auxiliary loss as per regulations

Hydro Pumped hydro

• Pumped hydro not eligible for

LGC creation

• Acquisition of electricity for use

in hydro pumps could be liable under the RET

• CER would be happy to provide

guidance to pumped hydro and energy storage proponents

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The future for pumped hydro

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• Increased investment in dispatchable generation and

storage at grid-scale in response to high levels of VRE

• penetration. The backup and storage technologies

deployed will include gas-fired generation, batteries and pumped hydro.

• Transforming Australia’s electricity generation is not a

matter of choosing just one technology over another. Finkel Review – Blueprint for Future Security

• f National Electricity Market

Questions