The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has announced $46.3 million in funding for the second round of its Community Batteries Funding Program, aiming to expand energy storage solutions across the country.
Building on the initial phase of the program, ARENA said the new funding round seeks to further support the deployment of community batteries designed to reduce energy costs, lower emissions, and alleviate pressure on local electricity grids.
ARENA has invited applications for projects that enhance the economic viability of community batteries, strengthen industry expertise, integrate distributed energy resources into the national energy market, and demonstrate the broader benefits of battery deployment.
ARENA requires eligible community batteries to be between 50 kilowatts and 5 megawatts in capacity and connected to the distribution network.
These batteries play a key role in storing surplus solar energy for later use, increasing the capacity of rooftop solar and contributing to more stable and affordable energy prices for households.
ARENA CEO Darren Miller highlighted the importance of energy storage in Australia’s transition to renewable energy.
“Part of increasing our dependency on renewably sourced energy is the need to increase our firming technology to make sure the energy grid is secure and reliable. We can achieve this by storing energy in batteries when renewable energy is plentiful and use this stored energy later in the day and overnight when people most need it,” Miller said.
Miller noted that ongoing investment in battery storage is essential to ensuring a resilient and reliable electricity system.
“Over recent years, a concerted effort has been made in deploying batteries to support the grid and transition to clean energy. Round 2 will build on the insights, expertise and knowledge developed in Round 1, resulting in further optimisation of distributed energy resources in the electricity grid,” he added.
The program is part of the Australian Government’s broader Household Solar budget measure, which allocated $200 million in the 2022-23 Federal Budget to support the deployment of 400 community batteries nationwide.
ARENA was allocated $171 million of this funding to deliver at least 342 community batteries across the first two rounds of the program.
Funding applications for Round 2 will be open from 17 March 2025 to 30 April 2025.
More details, including eligibility criteria and the application process, are available on ARENA’s funding page.
