The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Government has announced that several local renewable energy projects will receive funding boosts in its latest round of Government-funded innovation grants.
According to Minister for Water, Energy and Emissions Reduction Shane Rattenbury, the third round of the ACT Government’s Renewable Energy Innovation Fund (REIF) grants will provide the sector with more than $1.2 million to help fund renewable energy innovation efforts.
Minister Rattenbury said the grants will support projects that aim to address the climate crisis by supporting on-demand hydrogen production, increasing the efficiency of solar panels and enhancing the ACT’s network of grid-connected batteries.
“The REIF grants have been immensely successful in their first 2 rounds. The approximately $3.1 million of funding awarded since 2017 has helped 14 companies kickstart their renewable vision in the ACT,” he added.
The Minister stated that the third round of the grants support projects integral to addressing the climate crisis by supporting on-demand hydrogen production, increasing the efficiency of solar panels, and enhancing the ACT’s network of grid-connected batteries.
The recipients of the grants include PV Lab Australia, SPARK3D, Hydrogen Renewable Energy Australia, Zeppelin Bend and FLEX-G.
PV Lab aims to reduce the number of solar panels that get thrown away and find ways to reuse them instead.
The project will study why panels deteriorate in humid climates and implement solutions to fix the outstanding issues related to longevity.
SPARK3D will focus on additive manufacturing capabilities that can reduce waste and energy consumption in the production of solar panels.
Hydrogen Renewable’s project supports the production of green hydrogen on-site, which aims to address the demand for hydrogen while reducing issues with transportation and storage.
Zeppelin Band will work on the development of a web-based toolkit that can identify specific locations where the power grid is facing limitations or constraints.
FLEX-G’s project aims to improve the lifespan of large battery energy storage systems through enhanced thermal management.
