The federal and Western Australian governments have officially launched five new community batteries across Perth to help reduce energy bills, lower emissions, and improve local power reliability.
The initiative, funded through the federal government’s $200 million Community Batteries for Household Solar program, allocated $2.5 million to Western Power to develop batteries in Coogee, Kinross, Bayswater, Stratton, and Port Kennedy.
Together, these community batteries provide a combined capacity of 500kW and 2.8MWh, servicing approximately 350 households, including renters, apartment dwellers, and homes where rooftop solar panels cannot be installed.
Connected households can save up to $132 each year, with an additional 4kWh off-peak energy offset available through a retail subscription product that Synergy plans to launch later this year.
The Coogee battery is already operational, with Kinross, Bayswater, and Stratton upcoming, while construction at Port Kennedy is set to begin shortly.
These additions complement another 13 community batteries already operating across the South West Interconnected System.
Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy Josh Wilson said: “The Albanese government has got investment flowing, and we’re getting on with delivering cheaper, cleaner, more reliable and more accessible renewable energy to cut energy bills and reduce emissions across all sectors of our community.
“Western Australians have clearly embraced our state’s world-leading access to solar energy with almost half of all homes equipped with solar panels that feed into one of the world’s largest stand-alone grids.
“Now we are working to increase our storage capacity to make sure we get the most out of all the free solar energy being harnessed across WA.
“Our investment in batteries both large and small, like these five community batteries, combined with our work on VPPs, means that Australia’s largest state is at the forefront of the clean energy transformation, especially when it comes to storage and the coordination of consumer energy resources.”
Western Australia’s Minister for Energy and Decarbonisation Amber-Jade Sanderson added: “The Cook government is supporting grid-scale wind, solar, and battery storage for our clean energy transition.
“At the same time, our residential battery scheme, with rebates and no-interest loans, and the roll out of community batteries are ways in which households can benefit.
“Community batteries harness excess solar energy and manage its release, helping to reduce the need for network upgrades in areas of high energy demand.
“This lowers the energy cost for everyone, not just solar customers.”
Local Member for Cockburn, David Scaife, noted: “Cockburn households are amongst the biggest adopters of rooftop solar in the country, which makes Coogee a logical place to deliver a community battery.
“We know that households are doing it tough, and this new community battery in Coogee will go some way to taking the sting out of energy bills for locals every year.”
The City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett also emphasised the environmental and community benefits, stating: “The City of Cockburn has a strong history in taking decisive and responsible action on climate change.
“This community battery will enable more people to install rooftop solar by helping manage network constraints.
“They also provide access to renewable energy for those who cannot install solar panels, contributing to lower greenhouse gas emissions.
City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett highlighted that in May 2020, the city engaged the community to gather leadership on shaping a sustainable and climate-resilient future.
This community input formed the basis for the Climate Change Strategy 2020-2030, which establishes ambitious targets and actions aimed at achieving carbon neutrality and adapting to climate impacts.
Mayor Howlett also noted that the city has been a pioneer in solar energy since 2009, currently holding the largest collection of solar photovoltaic systems of any local government in Western Australia.
To date, more than 5,700 solar panels have been installed across 22 community buildings, generating clean energy and cutting greenhouse gas emissions in the region.
Alongside these community batteries, the federal and state governments are collaborating on the WA Residential Battery Scheme, enabling 100,000 households to store renewable power generated at home through rebates and no-interest loans.
The scheme combines the $337 million Western Australian Battery Rebate and the $2.3 billion Federal Government Cheaper Home Batteries program.
This investment supports the installation of solar systems and battery storage to provide ongoing cost-of-living relief, strengthen grid reliability, and secure the state’s clean energy future.
Western Australia’s growing renewable energy capacity is further reflected in significant projects like the Boddington Giga Battery, Merredin Big Battery, and others that lead the country in grid-scale battery adoption.
The Australian government has additionally invested $20.8 million in Project Jupiter to expand the benefits of Virtual Power Plants (VPPs), which coordinate consumer energy resources for a more resilient and sustainable energy system nationwide.
Nationwide, the Community Batteries for Household Solar program plans to install 400 batteries across Australia to provide shared energy storage for households, reinforcing a broad shift toward cleaner, more affordable energy solutions.
This multifaceted support positions Western Australia as a leader in the clean energy transformation, combining community-scale projects, household incentives, and large-scale infrastructure to deliver benefits to households and the environment alike.
