South West solar project aims to outdo Tesla

With a scorching start to summer which includes the earliest recorded 40-degree day in December – calls for action on climate change are reverberating around the state.

One Australian company, born and bred in WA, is building a ‘virtual power plant’, with installations being carried out across the South West.

“We provide an aggregated service that will allow the networks to talk to all of our systems while maintaining confidentiality for the households and protecting their data,” explained a Plico spokesperson.

“For example, in the next 12 months we will install a battery ‘system’ that’s equivalent if not bigger than the Tesla system in South Australia and provider similar services at no or lower cost to the community.

“We are providing a low upfront offer that enable all of our members to have cheaper, cleaner and more reliable energy the day their system is installed.”

The company will see their first installations in Margaret River and Perth this month. Installations commenced in Dunsborough in October and the spokesperson said response had been positive.

“Our first Margaret River install is a family of four living locally in town who are looking forward to cutting their energy bills, and more importantly reducing their household emissions.”

Creator of the project Brian Innes said households could have a solar and battery storage system installed for under $40 per week.

“This means they can power their house during the day directly from the sun and store the energy for use at night, ending their reliance on traditional coal powered fossil fuels.

“Over 20 years we will halve the energy costs of our Plico energy members with the savings increasing over time but they will see the impact on their bill from day one.”

Mr Innes said household requirements varied but that everyone had potential to make large savings.

“It’s difficult to say how much people will save because everyone’s use is different but we work with our customers to understand what their current spend is, if this is suitable for them and then once the system is installed how to maximise its efficiencies to transition to as much renewable energy as possible.

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