The Southcoast Health and Sustainability Alliance (SHASA) is looking for Eurobodalla Shire Council’s blessing for a proposed feasibility study on the potential for a community solar farm and battery storage project in the region.
SHASA is a non-profit group undertaking projects to achieve a more resilient community in the Eurobodalla; with a focus on renewable energy and sustainability. These became more pressing issues after many parts of the region were ravaged by the devastating Black Summer bushfires of 2019-2020. Among the communities impacted was the major population centre of Batemans Bay.
Among SHASA’s activities is participation as a partner in the Southcoast μ-grid Reliability Feasibility (SμRF) project overseen by the Australian National University. In case you were wondering, the ” μ” character is the Greek letter (mu), and is also the official symbol for the SI prefix “micro” – so “micro-grid”. It might have a lot simpler just to state “micro”, but then there wouldn’t have been the cool acronym, SμRF. “SMRF” spoken may sound more like it refers to small blue forest-dwelling creatures.
Anyway, SHASA is also investigating the potential for a community solar farm with battery storage in the region. It points to a successful community-driven solar farm project further north on the New South Wales South Coast, the 3MW Shoalhaven Solar Farm near Nowra.
That venture, part-funded by community investors and supported by Shoalhaven City Council, is selling electricity generated by the solar farm via power purchase agreements (PPAs) through Flow Power, with some of it earmarked for the City of Sydney under a PPA executed in 2019.
SHASA has submitted an expression of interest to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) for financial support to undertake a feasibility study of a Eurobodalla community solar farm and battery to improve reliability of the grid and generate more energy locally.
SHASA is seeking $50,000 via the WWF’s Innovate to Regenerate fund to assist with costs associated with developing the feasibility study. WWF requested SHASA submit a full application by Thursday this week.
Having Eurobodalla Shire Council’s in-principle support for the feasibility study project could be helpful in securing funding – and that’s what Council will vote on today. So, fingers crossed councillors give the green light.
Eurobodalla Shire Council’s Solar Energy Street Cred
The chances of SHASA getting the in-principle support are probably pretty good. The Shire is a fairly solar-friendly place and Council understands the value of renewables; not just for reducing emissions that can stoke events such as the Black Summer bushfire emergency, but also for busting energy bills and creating jobs.
In addition to installing thousands of solar panels across its assets, Eurobodalla Shire Council inked a PPA with ENGIE-backed Simply Energy last year involving electricity supply from solar farms at Parkes and Griffith in New South Wales, and from wind farms in the New England region yet to come online.
Council has also been spruiking the benefits of home solar power – back in 2020, its then-Sustainability Coordinator declared home and commercial solar was “a safe bet“.
The organisation has a target of sourcing 100 per cent of its electricity from renewables by 2030, and a local solar farm could be another potential source for helping it achieve this aim.
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Great to see SHASA getting some publicity. I can recommend having a look at what they are doing on the South Coast of NSW.
Here’s a link to their website: https://shasa.com.au/
I am not affiliated with SHASA in any way apart from supporting them.
They do seem to be able to open doors and pull strings. Hopefully they will continue their efforts in the long term.