Powering the Future of WA
8 June 2018
Harris River Estate, Collie
Harris River Estate, Collie
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by speakers at the Critical Horizons – Powering the Future of WA conference belong to the individual speakers only.
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Hon Ben Wyatt, WA Minister for Energy
Ministerial address Collie is an ideal location for the Critical Horizons – Powering the Future of WA conference. As the energy hub of Western Australia, this town and the surrounding regions have a proud and rich history of coal mining and power generation that has long supported the industrial, commercial and economic interests of our State. The energy landscape is evolving, and this evolution brings with it both opportunities and challenges. Western Australia has been blessed with a diverse natural environment that makes our State ideally placed to lead the nation in the development and rollout of renewable energy technology. |
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Heather Smith, Chair
Coalition for Community Energy Around the world, communities are shaping the energy transition based on local priorities. In doing so, they are also taking the fate of regional economies back into their own hands. What is driving this movement? And what will the electricity system of the future look like if the community-led model prevails? Communities at the forefront of energy transition |
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Lyn Serventy, Chair,
Ian Williams, Deputy Chair Augusta Margaret River Clean Community Energy Augusta Margaret River Clean Community Energy is a grassroots community organisation working in partnership with local government to establish a grid-connected clean energy facility in Margaret River. The group is working to establish a plant with three sources of energy: 10 MW of wind; 5 MW of solar and 2 MW of biogas from cow effluent. Powering up a community |
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Glynn Ellis, Chief Business Development Officer
Redback Energy What are virtual power plants? And what are the opportunities for regional centres to use these to support overall power system reliability for Western Australia? The ability to smart link and integrate multiple small distributed energy resources ─ such as household and small business rooftop solar and battery storage ─ allows for generated energy to be shared to service and balance load demands and support grid ancillary services. The future grid: Virtual power plant distributed renewable energy across Western Australia |
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Sherry Thomas, Co-proprietor
Cycletrek What is it like living off the grid? Meet a South West business owner who does just that while running a bike shop, eco-accommodation facility and mountain bike trails experience. Discover the challenges, learnings and benefits of minimising power consumption. Off-grid in the South West of WA: Riding the trail to sustainable living |
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Tristy Fairfield, New Projects and Stakeholder Engagement
Carnegie Clean Energy From the growth of rooftop and utility-scale solar to wind farms, coupled with changes to network topography, the energy landscape is changing. Consider how rural and regional communities can leverage the opportunities that this transition presents. Using Carnegie’s clean energy portfolio as examples, the presentation will consider future clean energy options in the region and include an update on Carnegie’s Albany Wave Energy Project. Innovative solutions for a new economy: Off-grid, battery energy storage and micro-grid technologies |
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Glen Holland, Managing Director
SunWise Energy Looking over the horizon, home owners and commercial premises can now and will in the future build islands of locally produced power and energy storage into their homes and premises. Businesses and residents have already taken up solar power, reaping significant ongoing financial benefits. Solar storage, time of use smart energy optimisation, micro grids and electric vehicles are next and are rapidly being adopted. These technologies will create disruption and opportunity in how energy is used, managed and produced and massively reduce green-house gas emissions. South West energy and sustainability: There is a better way |
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Kim Brooksbank, Project Manager
Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development We are about to see an explosion of new industries being created out of materials that were recently considered to be waste. Bioenergy from waste biomass helps us solve a waste issue, delivers base-load renewable energy, and creates additional permanent jobs in our regions. We have off–the–shelf technology to suit any waste material, and a range of local companies with rapidly expanding capabilities ready to build bioenergy infrastructure. The future of bioenergy |
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Costa Tsesmelis, Managing Director
Collie Synfuels Coal gasification with carbon capture and storage presents Australia ─ with its abundant coal resources ─ the opportunity to meet future hydrogen demand with low environmental impact without carbon dioxide emissions. Collie Synfuels’ modular coal-to-fuel cell hydrogen project developments have carbon capture and storage as an integral part of its technology. Learn about the progress being made for this Collie project earmarked for the Shotts Industrial Park and the integration and synergies this major processing facility offers renewable energy projects such as waste-to-energy, biomass-to-liquids, and wind-generated electrolysis for off-peak hydrogen production. An alternative pathway to Australia’s hydrogen economy |
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Dominique Van Gent, Coordinator Carbon Strategy
Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety The reduction of carbon emissions requires a range of strategies and new technologies. These include more efficient generation systems, high energy low emissions coal power, fuel switching and carbon capture and storage. Learn about some of the emissions strategies at an international and national level before focusing on the South West Hub investigations into the carbon storage potential of the Lesueur Formation in the South West. Opportunities for reducing industrially generated carbon dioxide in the South West |
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Richard Harris, Chair
WA Independent Power Association The presentation will look at getting the policy settings right in the energy area at both State and Federal levels to encourage new investment in the South West. New technologies using biomass, solar and wind can all play a role, but natural gas and coal will continue to be important for some time to come. Future investment opportunities in the energy sector in the South West of WA: The importance of good policy |
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Ben Bristow, Acting Head of Grid Transformation
Western Power Utilising technology and data, Western Power is reshaping its network to meet the changing energy needs of customers. Excited about the opportunities that technology is bringing, Western Power is committed to improving reliability, keeping network costs down and responding to demands for renewable energy choices. These solutions are delivered by people working in communities across the network. Unlocking the network’s power potential |
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Jason Waters, Chief Executive Officer
Synergy The landscape of energy is changing – across the world, across Australia, the State and the SWIS, right down to the way every business and household thinks about energy. Traditional utilities relied on large-scale, long term investment (typically government owned) to meet the historically increasing future demand for electricity. Emerging technologies and customer demands are changing how and when energy is generated and used. The infrastructure for the new energy future will look very different to today. The impacts of innovation are being felt across the entire industry. What is shaping WA’s electricity sector? A story of disruption |
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Alan Flavelle, Chief Scientist
Greenpower Energy Most of the techniques that involve the extraction of useful products from coal come with a penalty—usually in the form of carbon dioxide emissions. Over the last five years, Greenpower Energy has evaluated several innovative coal conversion technologies. One process, called Oxidative Hydrothermal Dissolution (OHD), was found to have a very small pollution penalty and can be used as a basic solution of chemicals in water to make an agricultural bio-stimulant. Alternative uses for coal in the changing energy landscape |