Our team undertook five days of International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) Australasia training this week, facilitated by Margaret Harvie.

The training provided an opportunity to the team members to deep dive into the complex, complicated and challenging engagement situations, unlock new lens around strategic thinking and use a wide range of tools to engage well with our stakeholders and community members.

As part of our Regulatory Reset Proposal Engagement, the team is excited to apply these skills into real life scenarios.

Fatima lives in a Housing SA Property with her three children and had been dependent for years on portable, costly heaters to keep warm after several years of chemotherapy impacted her sensitivity to cold, driving up her power bill.

Owning good quality and efficient household appliances is something many of us take for granted. Imagine having to constantly choose between heating your home or putting food on the table. This is a reality for one in five Australian households living below the poverty line. For those struggling on low incomes, the prospect of an appliance upgrade or energy efficiency improvements is often an unaffordable dream.

The introduction of a trial, funded in 2022 by SA Power Networks in close collaboration with utility literacy program ConnectEd, is helping shift the energy equity needle in South Australia. With an initial investment of $50,000, ConnectEd worked with its state-wide network of energy advisors and financial counsellors to improve energy efficiency and affordability for vulnerable and low-income households. Within six months, the trial has seen grants approved for over 70 households and individuals to purchase new energy efficient appliances and pay down their energy debt.

Fatima’s Financial Counsellor at ConnectEd partner, UnitingCare Wesley Bowden, knew that the grant, air conditioner and support from energy specialists in the ConnectEd program would help her save on the cost of her power bill in the long run. The ConnectEd team engaged a Retailer Energy Productivity Scheme (REPS) supplier to install a new 3.5kW air conditioner which was positioned above Fatima’s front door to make sure it worked as efficiently as possible. The staff went the extra mile and draught sealed the front door and the kitchen back door to prevent air escaping and costing Fatima more on her bills.

The program aims to reduce and stabilise energy bills, while positively impacting household finances and mental stress for most of the clients who have been funded.

“SA Power Networks was happy to support this trial and partner with ConnectEd to support customers in need to improve their energy efficiency and reduce their energy debt” said Alex Lewis, SA Power Reset Engagement Manager.

Following on from its initial success, the trial for the program has been extended for an additional six months. Click here to learn more about the program.

Last month, we invited our customers throughout the State to come and have a say about the energy services we could deliver from 2025-2030.

Our 'Shape your energy future' survey covered seven initiatives that we could invest in to improve the electricity services across the State. In recognition of the invaluable time that our customers put in to complete the survey, we had twenty $200 gift cards to give away, ten each for residential and business customers.

The winners were drawn on December 16 and were notified via an email. Click here to learn more about the survey and the list of the winners.

SA Power Networks’ Reset Engagement Manager, Alex Lewis and Chair of the Arborist Reference Group, Kelvin Trimper, AM spoke at the Energy Networks Australia Conference 2022 in Brisbane about working closely with stakeholders to deliver improvements to the community and reduce vegetation clearance requirements.

Set over three days, the conference featured key energy players from around the nation with local and international speakers sharing their expertise on navigating the energy transformation.

Applications are now open for SA Power Networks’ Community Grants program which has been created to assist communities to empower themselves and make a tangible difference in their local area. The Grant seeks to empower activities, programs or events which will help make a positive impact in South Australia in one or more of the following areas:

• Keeping the community safe
• Supporting our customers and community
• Growing a sustainable SA
• Supporting innovation for future growth

Applications are welcome from organisations, registered charities, schools, or community groups for a grant amount of up to $5,000.
Applications are open now and will close 5 PM, Monday 2 May 2022 ACST.

For more information on the application process, click here.

If you need any more information, please email communitygrants@sapowernetworks.com.au

Adelaide's Grey-headed Flying Fox colony is posing new challenges for power supply this year, due to their high numbers and an unusual early birthing pattern.

The Grey-headed Flying Fox colony that lives in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens is estimated to have grown to between 28,000 and 32,000 due to successive mild summers. Numbers have stayed consistent for the past three years, but an unusual early birthing pattern has seen us respond to more bat-related power outages in January and February this year, than ever before.

The Grey-headed Flying Fox is the largest bat in Australia and one of the largest in the world. A significant group of flying foxes, a protected species listed as vulnerable, arrived in South Australia in 2010 from the eastern states and established a permanent colony in the botanic gardens near the Adelaide Zoo. Their numbers have grown from around 10,000 in the early years to more than 28,000 now. As the colony has grown over the years, so have the number of power outages across our network.

The Flying Foxes cause power outages when they make contact between powerlines and pole top equipment, including insulators, transformers and switches or when caught by lightning arrestors. When this happens, the power outage can vary anywhere from 60 seconds to 2 hours, depending on whether or not we need to inspect our powerlines.

They are most active at night when out looking for food (nectar, pollen and fruit) and they travel far, covering much of metropolitan Adelaide and nearby horticultural areas. They do not have specific flight paths and so their impact is widespread across our network, making it difficult to undertake targeted defensive action.

The chart below shows the total number of power outages related to bats on our network each year from 2014 to 2021. It also shows power outages related to bats for this year from 1 January to 7 February.

Unusual early birthing pattern this season impacting on the electricity network

Before 2020, researchers were used to recording little-to-no births of juvenile flying foxes in September. This year though, they saw an unusual birthing pattern, with the majority of juvenile births early in the season. More than 80% of births happened throughout September and before mid-October.

During an early birthing season, with a high number of surviving juveniles, foraging behaviour can begin as early as mid-January. This data is proving to be consistent with our experience in managing the distribution network, with four times more than usual flying fox related power outages already this year.

We expect more outages to occur in coming months as the large number of juveniles start to venture out and forage for food.

Minimising the impact of Grey-headed Flying Fox related power outages

During 2021, about 240,000 customers had a power supply interruption linked to 82 outages involving the Grey-headed Flying Foxes. This is a significant issues for us and our customers. We are actively working to minimise these power outages for our customers, and the risk of electrocution to the flying fox colony.

To better understand this issue, we have been working closely with fauna rescue groups, the Department of Water and Environment and the University of Adelaide.

We have installed animal guards and insulation covering on some overhead equipment where repeat outages have occurred. Also, a program of "sectionalising" high- risk lines has helped reduce the number of customers impacted by these outages.

We have a large distribution network across Adelaide and the random nature of outages involving bats, unfortunately makes it difficult to eliminate or minimise their occurrence. We continue to work on new strategies to minimise impact of flying foxes related outages.

Click on the video below to hear Paul Roberts, Head of Corporate Affairs, SA Power Networks talk about the outages caused by the Grey-headed Flying Foxes.

What to do if you see a Grey-headed Flying Fox in powerlines?

The welfare of the protected native Grey-headed Flying Foxes and all other animals, is important to us.

Report power outages to SA Power Networks by calling 13 13 66

Report injured animals to either of the following organisations:

Bat Rescue SA on 0475 132 093

Fauna Rescue Flying Fox and Microbat Team on 8486 1139

Refrain from touching injured animals if you have not been trained how to do it safely.

Provide feedback on how we can improve the network application and close out process, the resources and support we provide in achieving compliance.

South Australia is leading the world in distributed energy resources (DER) such as rooftop solar and home batteries. We are working to double the amount of solar we can accommodate on our network by 2025.

In order to continue connecting DER to the network, DER is now required to be 'smart' and able to interact with the energy system. This is driving changes to standards and the connections process, requiring new capabilities from the solar industry and increasing the importance of compliance of any installed systems to these standards.

Primary examples of important areas for compliance include:

• The remote disconnection / re-connection and dynamic export limit requirements as determined by the SA Government's 'Smarter Homes' regulations
• Enrolling DER in SA Power Networks' Flexible Exports connection offer
• Power quality settings on inverters (Volt/VAr and Volt/Watt)
• Installation, commissioning and close out of the job as part of the connections processes

From January 2022, SA Power Networks will proactively start working with solar retailers and installers to ensure all systems sold and installed are compliant. Achieving compliance is a shared outcome and something we all need to contribute to. You can read about our proposed actions and important changes to the DER connections process here.

What we've heard

Over the past 12 months, SA Power Networks has been working with industry bodies, manufacturers, solar retailers, and installers about the steps required to meet the DER compliance. This is what we’ve heard:

• The auto approve function of SmartApply is making the application process quicker.
• Having a dashboard in SmartApply helps keep track of applications.
• Not everyone is aware of SmartInstall.
• Commissioning processes for some systems are unclear.
• Customers don’t want to share Wi-Fi passwords making connecting to internet hard.

We want to better understand how we can improve the network application and close out processes for small embedded generation (SmartApply and SmartInstall), the resources and support we provide so that we can work together to meet compliance goals.

Have Your Say

To provide feedback, please review the Information Brochure and:

• Fill out the online feedback form Click Here
• Book in for an online meeting to talk to our team - bookings can be made by calling or emailing us (below)
• Email us at newenergyservices@sapowernetworks.com.au(External link)
• Call us on 13 12 61 during office hours.

Consultation closes 5pm, 28 January 2022.

Expressions of Interest: Community Advisory Board, SA Power Networks

Are you interested in helping shape the future of energy in South Australia?

As South Australia’s electricity distributor, SA Power Networks plays a central role in our State’s economic and social well-being. In doing so, we work collaboratively with customers and stakeholders.

We are seeking several new members for our Community Advisory Board who are willing to share their time, skills and experience to work collaboratively to ensure customer views shape our service delivery and decision-making.

We are looking for people with a basic understanding or interest in the electricity industry, a willingness to commit time to working with SA Power Networks and who can represent the broader interests of customers. We are also seeking a Chair and Deputy Chair for the CAB to build consensus amongst different points of view. A collaborative mindset will be a crucial skill to ensure success in these roles.

Click here for the Information Pack for our Community Advisory Board (CAB) - November 2021

Please contact Alexandra Lewis, Customer Consultation Lead on 0428 695 173 or alex.lewis@sapowernetworks.com.au to apply. Expression of interest applications close on the 6th December 2021.

SA Power Networks gets Smart! Free industry webinars - Recordings Available

SmartApply and SmartInstall are the smart new tools that have been developed to support the solar industry!

If you are a solar retailer or solar installer for small embedded generation, we encourage you to view the webinar recordings!

Our goal is to double the amount of solar on our network by 2025. We are committed to ensuring that our distribution network can continue to support the growth of rooftop solar in the state for years to come.

In late September 2021, SA Power Networks will introduce new connection options for new and upgrading small embedded generation solar customers in parts of Adelaide’s southern suburbs where the network is becoming significantly overloaded with solar exports.

As an alternative to imposing low or zero export limits as we’ve seen in other states, we are introducing two new connection options for customers; a flat Fixed Export option of 1.5kW per phase (vs the current 5kW per phase) or Flexible Exports that automatically adjusts between 1.5kW to 10kW per phase. Flexible Exports will be introduced as part of a trial to test the new technology and customer and installer experience.

From 1 July 2022, the SA Government will require solar installations / inverters to be capable of remotely updating and enacting dynamic export limits. Over time, we also plan to expand the service so that all customers can get access to flexible export limits if they wish. Participating in the trial provides opportunity for you to get ahead of the curve with how dynamic export connections and new technology work, and be ready to hit the ground running when the new regulations come into effect.

We ran three free industry webinars and encourage you to view the recordings to find out how the trial will benefit you and your customers.

You can learn about the new application and approval process, and preview our updated Portal. You also can review installation instructions for Flexible Exports-compatible solar systems, and we’ve answered your questions in an interactive Q&A session.

Wednesday 1 September, 4pm-5:30pm

Click Here to watch the recording.

‘What you need to know about Flexible Exports trial’

This covered:

• Changes to export limits, flexible exports trial and future plans
• How to use the new SmartApply application to identify if a customer is in a constrained area – and what to do next
• How to have a conversation with customers about the fixed vs flexible exports options

Thursday 9 September, 4pm-5:30pm

Click Here to watch the recording

‘Installation requirements for Flexible Exports trial’

This covered:

• Information on the new technology required for Flexible Exports
• Information on technical guides, instructions and how to get the support and training
• How to use the new SmartInstall application when commissioning / closing out a Flexible Exports installation

Tuesday 14 September, 4pm-5:00pm

Click Here to watch the recording.

‘SwitchDin Flexible Exports product training’

Our trial partner SwitchDin will provide this training, which will cover:

• Information on the Droplet (gateway device) installation for Flexible Exports
• Hints, tips and techniques on wiring, commissioning and how to get support
• Information on the development of additional inverters for including in the Flexible Exports trial

Visit SwitchDin's support page for more information

The Australian Energy Regulator has approved SA Power Networks’ network tariffs for 2021/22.

Reflecting the price path for the five year regulatory period of 2020-2025, there will be small reductions in distribution charges for residential and small business customers.

In 2021/22, there be a 1.4% reduction ($8) in the distribution network component of electricity bills for the average residential customer (4MWh) and a 1.7% reduction ($38) for small business on the single rate (20MWh).

Meanwhile, SA Power Networks is encouraging small business customers to look at opportunities to make major savings by switching their network tariff arrangements.

After extensive engagement with stakeholders and with Regulator approval we are moving away from business demand tariffs to Time of Use (ToU) tariffs. These offer the opportunity for a significant number of businesses to save on their electricity bill. Typically, the ones who will benefit most would be businesses that have invested in rooftop solar PV since 2015, have an interval meter and who have daytime business hours (to 5pm).

It is important businesses talk to their retailers to check they are on the best deal possible.

Energy Made Easy is a free Australian Government energy price comparison service for households and small businesses. It provides excellent information on the best options by using consumption and retail price data to match a business or residential customer with the best retail deal.