It’s official – we’ve done it! We have proven that expensive hardware is not required for virtual power plants, we can control household batteries straight from the internet – no hardware required! This will open up universal access to virtual power plants with a free, downloadable app that earns you money every time your battery is used to support the community.

Australians are fed up with paying top dollar for dirty, unsustainable coal-fired energy. By creating this new app, we’re flipping the script on Big Energy. We can now build virtual power plants all over Australia without any cost to customers and extra credits on their bills. This means Big Energy will start paying everyday Aussie households to access clean, sunshine-powered energy produced on their rooftops and stored in their batteries.

What’s a Virtual Power Plant?

When the grid gets stressed with lots of people using electricity, they need to turn on additional power plants to be able to supply enough energy (and prevent blackouts).  The problem is that the peaking gas power plants that often supply this energy are very dirty and extremely expensive.  However – they are currently necessary to avoid blackouts.  Moving foward, we need to show how renewables can provide a reliable alternative so that we can move away from peaking gas power plants on our transition towards 100% renewable energy.

That’s where virtual power plants come in.  A virtual power plant is a group of home batteries that are connected together via the internet so that they can act as one large power plant by sending their battery power to the grid at the same time.  You can think of the virtual power plant as a reservoir of solar energy that is available on-demand to be used when needed.  When the grid gets stressed and needs extra power, the power from the virtual power plant can be called upon as an alternative to the gas power plants.  In this way, batteries can provide a cleaner, lower cost, and more sustainable option than what’s currently available.  And the best part – each homeowner can earn extra credits on their electricity as a result.  Talk about a win win!

So, how can you get on board?

Step 1: Generate, store and use energy generated on your own rooftop with solar and battery technology. As a result, instantly reduce your energy bills by up to 90%

Step 2: Connect to ShineHub’s free Virtual Power Plant once your compatible battery system is installed (note: the offer is live in SA and VIC right now, with more states opening soon)

Step 3: Allow the grid to draw power from your household battery in peak times and get paid for it! Click here for more details.

Virtual power plants are well established across Europe. Not only are they a win for consumers, they also reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. Australia needs to catch up to the rest of the world and start building our Community Energy future.

Households that are already fitted with compatible solar and battery technology can connect immediately, for free. All you need to do is download our virtual power plant app and link it up with your system.

Households that currently don’t have solar and battery technology, but are interested in getting on board, can book a time for a free phone consultation.

These are the first steps in a total shake-up of Australia’s energy market. Once we establish virtual power plants across Australia, the next step is community energy sharing. This will allow all Australians to access solar energy sourced from households, businesses and community solar farms, rather than predominately coal-fired power from the grid.

Whilst our politicians squabble about energy policy in the corridors of Canberra and total inaction ensues, we’re taking matters into their own hands. If you want to be one of the pioneers of Australia’s Community Energy future and help us flip the script on Big Energy, get in touch so we can get you started!