Global law firm Ashurst has advised the City of Melbourne in relation to the establishment of a network of ‘community’ battery energy storage systems in Victoria. The work involved the structuring, managing tenders, negotiations and documentation of a Project Agreement and O&M/Orchestration Agreement with Origin Energy Electricity Limited (Origin).
The City of Melbourne is partnering with University of Melbourne and RMIT to deliver Power Melbourne, and Ashurst also advised on all data and IP aspects of knowledge sharing with the City of Melbourne’s partners.
The pilot stage of the Power Melbourne project will see Origin supply and install three batteries, one at each of: the Library at the Dock; the Boyd Community Hub; and Council House 1. In addition to the procurement and installation of the batteries, the City of Melbourne has also engaged Origin to operate and orchestrate the batteries. The pilot phase is an opportunity to test the Power Melbourne model and gain insights to inform the expansion of aggregation, battery network and retail offerings in the future.
The Power Melbourne project represents a significant milestone for the City of Melbourne in accelerating progress towards a renewable powered city and extending the benefits of affordable renewable energy to small businesses and residents. Installation of the first battery is expected to occur in mid-2024.
Ashurst partner Cassandra Wee said: “Distributed energy is a key pillar of our energy transition that is often underplayed. We are delighted to advise the City of Melbourne on its progressive Power Melbourne battery initiative. This project is well timed ahead of key reforms that further recognise and leverage the role of distributed energy resources in our National Electricity Market. Community batteries can support the continued growth of rooftop solar, EV-charging and behind-the-meter initiatives to achieve decarbonisation.”
The Ashurst team was led by partner Cassandra Wee and partner Jeff Lynn, along with: senior associate Mike Webb, and associates Jack Jones, Lauren Howe, and Lucy Merrett from the Projects and Energy Transition team; partner Geoff McGrath, and senior associates Sashini Walpola and Kit Lloyd from the Digital Economy team; Employment law partner Scarlet Reid; partner Nina Fitzgerald and associate Ben Parry from the Intellectual Property/Media team; and partner Kylie Lane from the Corporate team.
