The power must flow - girding the grid for renewables

afr.com:

“Let’s get this straight – the energy transition will only happen on the backs of a stable, secure and resilient grid,” says Samuel Morillon, managing director Australia, Siemens Energy.

As the nation gears up for the monumental shift to renewable energy, part of that change – perhaps the most important part — is upgrading and modernising our century-old power grid.

Samuel Morillon, managing director Australia, Siemens Energy. 

We can talk electric vehicles (EVs), charging stations and solar panels all we want, but at the heart of this challenge, what we need at the other end is a good, strong and resilient transmission and distribution system to plug them into.

Essentially, we’re transitioning from predictable, centralised fossil fuel generation close to population centres, to decentralised and variable sources in the middle of nowhere.

“The intermittent nature of renewable energy sources introduces an element of unpredictability in the frequency and voltage of electricity supplied to the grid,” explains Morillon.

“Our grids weren’t built to run on renewables. Traditionally, they were built to run on conventional power sources. Which is why we need to modernise our grid and transmission infrastructure to be able to meet the increase in demand for clean energy.”

For instance, he says, the US has earmarked more than 35 percent of its grid assets for replacement by 2040.

Australia is experiencing steady market growth, with the power market projected to achieve a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.5 per cent between 2023 and 2028.

There are a host of tools, technologies and gizmos that help the grid cope with the changing nature of the power it will increasingly be carrying, which represent a multibillion-dollar