Virtual home-energy trading study lowers costs, boosts access to clean power

Victoria-headquartered Deakin University has conductected a large-scale randomised control trial exploring a virtual energy network (VEN) that enables households and small businesses to buy and sell solar and battery power.

The VEN study, led by Deakin Business School and funded by Energy Consumers Australia’s grants program investigates how households and small businesses can be enabled to sell excess solar or battery-stored power directly to others via a digital platform.

300 sellers and buyers in the trial from Queensland, New South Wales (NSW), Victoria and South Australia (SA) traded energy based on mutually agreed prices, prompting cheaper than standard electricity rates and demonstrating a pathway to help consumers who cannot install solar panels.

One hundred participants did not have rooftop solar or batteries.

Deakin University Economics Associate Professor Dr Andrea La Nauze said the project shows a potential blueprint for creating a more inclusive and flexible energy system in Australia.

“Helping more people access the benefits of solar and battery power is vital to supporting Australia’s successful transition to net zero,” La Nauze said.

“The VEN allows people with solar to decide who their surplus power goes to, and how much they charge for it. It also shows how we can help more Australians access clean energy – even if they cannot install panels themselves.”

“Our research is a significant step toward leveraging this distributed energy resource for the benefit of all Australians, not just those able to install solar themselves,” La Nauze said.

The VEN is underpinned by Energy Locals, with trading managed via Enosi’s Powertracer software, and is funded through Energy Consumers Australia’s Grants Program in partnership with QuantumNRG, ReThink Sustainability, and WinZero.

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