The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) is investing $46.3 million into Round 2 of the Community Batteries Funding Program.

It has opened applications for groups to deploy community batteries with the aim of lowering energy bills and emissions while reducing pressure on the electricity grid.

Projects should improve the economics of community battery projects, build industry capacity, support the integration of distributed energy resources into Australian energy markets, or demonstrate benefits of community batteries, ARENA said.

To be eligible for ARENA funding, each community battery must be between 50 kW and 5 MW in size and connected to the distribution network.

ARENA chief executive officer Darren Miller said batteries were a critical part of the transition to net zero as the grid transitioned to energy generated from renewable sources.

“Part of increasing our dependency on renewably sourced energy is the need to increase our firming technology to make sure the energy grid is secure and reliable,” he said.

“We can achieve this by storing energy in batteries when renewable energy is plentiful and use this stored energy later in the day and overnight when people most need it.

“Over recent years, a concerted effort has been made in deploying batteries to support the grid and transition to clean energy.

“Round 2 will build on the insights, expertise and knowledge developed in Round 1, resulting in further optimisation of distributed energy resources in the electricity grid.”

As part of the 2022-23 Federal Budget, the Australian Government allocated $200 million for the Household Solar budget measure to deploy 400 community batteries across Australia.

In total, ARENA was allocated $171 million of this funding to deliver at least 342 community batteries across rounds 1 and 2.

More information about this program, including the application process, can be found at ARENA’s funding page. Funding applications can be submitted from March 17 to April 30, 2025.