AEMO is getting ready for full renewables.
Australia’s energy transition is “well underway” and happening “at pace”, with the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) preparing the grid for moments when renewable generation could exceed 100 per cent of demand.
Speaking at the Zema Energy Studies Scholarship Awards, AEMO CEO Daniel Westerman has outlined key technical priorities for the National Electricity Market (NEM) and flagged advances that will be particularly relevant for solar installers and system designers.
“Today in the NEM, renewable generation contribution averages about 43 per cent and peaks at 75 per cent during short periods,” he said.
“There are instances now where the possible contribution of renewables in the NEM reaches beyond 100 per cent.”
To manage these conditions securely, AEMO is relying on new capabilities laid out in its Engineering Roadmap to 100 per cent Renewables and Transition Plan for System Security.
These reports “identify critical actions needed in enabling a grid that can manage instances of up to 100 per cent renewables contribution,” he said.
Central to this is the use of grid-forming inverters, which Westerman said “can contribute to technical power system requirements, like system strength and inertia, and what is required to manage power system oscillations with decreasing levels of non-synchronous generators.”
This matters for solar professionals, particularly as rooftop PV and inverter-based systems increasingly dominate local generation.
The evolving technical standards and connection requirements for these systems will be shaped by AEMO’s research and operational findings.
Westerman acknowledged that replacing ageing coal-fired generation “comes with many challenges”, and that “no single organisation can solve all the complex challenges presented in transitioning our system.”
So, the authority is strengthening its collaboration with universities, researchers and industry through initiatives like the Zema Scholarship, which now includes a mid-year intake.
“We need people from a variety of backgrounds: analysts, IT, policy, strategy, business, economics, finance, law… The list is a long one,” he said.