Victoria to turn to Tesla battery power in time for next summer

Two large lithium-ion batteries will be built and connected to the grid in regional Victoria this year, giving the state’s west a significant renewable energy boost in time for next summer.

Two large-scale batteries will be built in Kerang and Ballarat this year.

The batteries, which will store solar and wind-generated energy,  will be built near Ballarat and Kerang and will have a combined generation capacity of 55 MW and a combined energy storage of 80 megawatt-hours – giving them more than half the power of South Australia's gigantic 100MW Tesla battery.

Read Adam Carey’s story from The Age - “Victoria to turn to Tesla battery power in time for next summer.”

Solar plant plan

With its proximity to Melbourne and ‘solar city’ potential, GV Community Energy chief executive Geoff Lodge believes the region holds an advantage in being considered for a proposal to power Melbourne’s tram network via solar plants.

Mr Lodge believes a Greater Shepparton City Council proposal to create a large-scale solar farm, now accepting expressions of interest, would be compatible with the Victorian Government proposal.

The government last week revealed Melbourne’s would be powered by a large-scale solar plant to be built in regional Victoria. It would run an open tender in the first half of 2017 to help build 75MW of new large-scale solar farms by the end of 2018, a statement said.

Read Thomas Moir’s story in The Shepparton News – “Solar plant plan.”

How climate change is affecting the wine we drink

Higher temperatures mean higher alcohol content

Family-owned winemaker Brown Brothers has been growing grapes in Victoria since the 1880s.

The company was founded by John Francis Brown, but established its reputation and success under his son John Charles Brown.

When John returned to Milawa in regional Victoria after finishing boarding school in 1958, he harvested his first vintage of grapes in the early days of April.

Fifty years later, the grapes are off the vines by April, with picking often starting in February. Within a generation, the harvest start date has shifted along with the climate in the valley.

It’s a dramatic indication of how climate change is affecting the way we make wine in Australia.

Read The New Daily story - “How climate change is affecting the wine we drink.”

Melbourne weather: Regional Victoria bracing for heavy rain, flash flooding

Flooded paddocks along the Drysdale Creek,
 north of Warrnambool, earlier this month.

The once in 50-years storm that lashed South Australia's coastline is expected to skip Melbourne, but could batter already saturated parts of regional Victoria.

Up to 80 millimetres of rain could fall within six hours over parts of northern and western Victoria on Wednesday night, with more expected on Thursday, raising fears of flash flooding.

Damaging winds up to 110km/h could also lash regional areas, as the complex low-pressure system crosses into Victoria's north-west overnight.

The fierce weather system that gripped South Australia on Wednesday afternoon, cut power to the entire state.

Read the Melbourne Age story - “Melbourne weather: Regional Victoria bracing for heavy rain, flash flooding.”