Lower power bills and increased energy reliability are among benefits for households in Maloneys Beach, Leeton and Goulburn, with three community batteries now switched on.
Each of the three Essential Energy batteries can produce 192kW of power and store 530kWh of energy.
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Hundreds of homeowners in each of these New South Wales suburbs will receive direct cost-of-living relief, with around a $75 discount off their energy bills every year for five years.
The annual saving will be applied directly to retail bills and appear as a credit, similar to the Commonwealth’s energy relief rebates.
Delivered under the federal government’s Community Batteries for Household Solar program, these community batteries will absorb excess rooftop solar during the day and feed it back to homes during peak times.
They can also avoid or defer costly upgrades to the electricity network’s poles and wires, benefitting all consumers through reduced network tariffs.
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Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said, “We’re bringing cleaner, cheaper and more reliable renewable energy to communities right across Australia, including Maloneys Beach, Leeton and Goulburn.
“The rain doesn’t always fall, but we always have water on tap because we store it for when we need it—community batteries will do the same thing with reliable and affordable renewable energy.”
