Study reveals potential of electricity export from Australia to RI
Wednesday, August 30 2017 - 01:29 AM WIB
An ambitious energy export plan could see solar power generated in Western Australia's north-west piped to Indonesia.
A report commissioned by the Pilbara Development Commission and authored by Australian and Indonesian researchers looked into the potential to export electricity generated by photovoltaic (PV) solar in the Pilbara to Asia, news portal abc.net.au said on Wednesday.
The study found it was feasible to deliver energy generated from a Pilbara solar facility and send it via a high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable under the sea to Indonesia.
Project manager Geoff James said the aim was to deliver a pilot project which would involve the development of a three gigawatt solar farm and a subsea transmission cable by 2030.
James said the solar technology existed now but plans for the subsea cable would need further investigation.
"Our proposition is that the solar industry [in the Pilbara] should be scaled up right now so that when the link comes into existence it's ready," he said as quoted by the news portal.
The pilot project could create up to 2,000 permanent jobs in the Pilbara region and more than 12,000 jobs across Western Australia.
James said solar PV potential in the Pilbara was "absolutely massive" and Indonesia had a "massive growth target" for increased energy generation.
"[Indonesia] wants 80 gigawatts more capacity, which is much more than Australia's entire generation capacity at the moment," he said.
He said Indonesia wanted to incorporate renewable energy into its target.
The WA Minister for Regional Development, Alannah MacTiernan, launched the study on Tuesday. She said the study established dialogue with Indonesia about WA's capacity to export renewable energy. (*)