POWER May 2017 - 13

turbances. " It also called for the prompt
improvement of frequency regulation services
to reduce the risk of islanding.
The federal government, led by Prime
Minister Malcolm Turnbull of the Liberal/
National Coalition, used the report's findings
to fan claims that the high penetration
of intermittent renewables in the
state was to blame for soaring energy
prices and compromised grid reliability.
Federal Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg
said, for example, that the statewide
blackout " was a wake-up call that underlines
the importance of maintaining the
supply of reliable electricity, " cautioning
other states that 50% renewable energy
targets would get them in trouble. He said:
" The report makes clear that the statewide
blackout would not have occurred if the
wind farms had ridden through a number
of voltage disturbances across the network. "
Others
pointed out that AEMO had previously
warned of similar scenarios owing
to the state's high level of wind and solar
generation. AEMO noted in its report that
a complete loss of the interconnector with
Victoria had occurred at least six times before.
Three of those events were initiated
by disconnection of generation in South
Australia.
" The key differentiator between the 28
September 2016 event and [the] other
three events is that there was significantly
lower inertia in [South Australia] in the
most recent event, due to a lower number
of on-line synchronous generators, " it
said. AEMO noted, though, that it hasn't
carried out any studies to determine
whether more baseload generation-including
coal, gas, and hydropower-would
have helped maintain the stable and secure
operation of the interconnector.
South Australia's last coal-fired power
plant, the aging Northern power station in
Port Augusta, was closed last year along
with a nearby coal mine, rendered uneconomical
by an oversupply of generation,
which included a recent surge in renewables.
Renewables make up more than
45% of its power mix today. As of early
April, the state relied on 714 MW of gas
generation capacity and 646 MW of wind
energy (Figure 5) for the bulk of its power.
Despite criticism of its reliance on renewables,
South Australian Premier Jay
Weatherill on March 14 took what was
widely considered an intervention in the
national energy market and launched a
comprehensive plan to secure the state's
power supplies. As he introduced the plan,
Weatherhill said it was " clear the national
energy market is failing the nation, as well
May 2017 | POWER
as South Australia. "
The A$550 million plan, " South Australian
Power for South Australians, " he
said, will be paid for from state government
surpluses. It entails building the
largest grid-connected battery in Australia
to store power; construction of a A$360
million state-owned 250-MW gas-fired
5. Of wind and bluster. Infigen Energy's 279-MW Lake Bonney wind farm is located on
the Woakwine Range, about 2 kilometers from the eastern shore of Lake Bonney, in South Australia.
Comprising 112 Vestas wind turbines, the wind farm is the largest in the state. Courtesy:
Infigen Energy
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POWER May 2017

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