The Government of South Australia is delivering 18 community batteries for South Australia through the emPowering SA program.
emPowering SA ensures the benefits of community batteries are realised by households who are currently locked out from accessing renewable energy technologies, and for whom lower energy bills means the most.
In partnership with energy retailer AGL, the emPowering SA battery fleet will deliver direct benefits to more than 10,000 South Australian government nominated households facing cost of living pressures, through access to a retail electricity rate 25 percent below the Default Market Offer (DMO), the default price for electricity.
On current figures, a typical household benefitting from emPowering SA could save up to $575 off their annual electricity bill (based on the annual saving estimate for a new residential customer when compared to the 2025–26 Default Market Offer (DMO) with an annual energy consumption of 4,000 kilowatt-hours per year.
With support from councils and local communities, emPowering SA batteries will be located across metropolitan and regional South Australia.
Two batteries located at Magill and Edwardstown are already storing and delivering renewable energy to our grid.
emPowering SA is expected to deliver around $60 million of value direct to low-income and energy hardship households across South Australia over the life of the batteries.
The emPowering SA community battery fleet is also one of many South Australian government initiatives to reduce emissions and meet our climate change targets.
On this page
Why it is important
South Australians who rent, or are on low or fixed incomes, have little opportunity to control their electricity bills by investing in renewable energy. Solar panels and home batteries can be costly to install, and agreements with landlords can be difficult to arrange.
As a result, these households have fewer opportunities to reduce their electricity expenses. They are more likely to turn off air conditioning or heating, or to forgo essential items like food.
emPowering SA demonstrates how community batteries can reduce these risks, and deliver a more equitable energy transition.
On current figures, a typical household benefiting from emPowering SA is expected to save up to $575 off their annual electricity bill.
As well as these direct benefits, emPowering SA is expected to deliver other benefits including:
- improved electricity grid stability
- lower emissions
- improved understanding of household energy usage patterns
- increased South Australian industry capacity in the delivery of community energy infrastructure
- reduced barriers to other large scale community battery deployments.
Who is involved
emPowering SA is being delivered by the Government of South Australia, in partnership with energy retailer AGL.
Councils and local communities are also providing support to host community batteries in their areas. Local councils already working with us include The Barossa Council, Campbelltown City Council, City of Marion, Rural City of Murray Bridge, City of Playford, City of Port Adelaide Enfield, Port Pirie Regional Council, and City of West Torrens.
emPowering SA is supported by the Australian Government’s Community Batteries for Household Solar program.
The details
emPowering SA is delivering a fleet of 18 community batteries across South Australia.
All emPowering SA community batteries will be owned by the Government of South Australia, and operated by energy retailer AGL as part of a virtual power plant (VPP).
The batteries store excess energy from the grid when renewable energy is abundant.
They then make that energy available at night, during periods of high demand, or when the grid needs support.
Every household benefiting from emPowering SA will be in a home that cannot support its own solar panels or a battery.
This ensures these South Australians are not locked out from accessing renewable energy technologies and the benefits it can provide.
Knowledge from emPowering SA will be shared to provide information on the real-world deployment and operation of community batteries for the benefit of future projects by the private sector and community groups.
The locations
Two emPowering SA batteries have already been delivered and are located at:
- Tuku Wirra on Koongarra Court, Magill
- Towers Terrace, Edwardstown.
These batteries have been delivered in partnership with Campbelltown City Council and City of Marion.
emPowering Magill
Tuku Wirra on Koongarra Court, Magill
emPowering Edwardstown
Towers Terrace, Edwardstown
With support from councils and local communities, 16 more emPowering SA batteries will be located across metropolitan and regional South Australia.
Councils already working with the Department for Energy and Mining (DEM) to deliver these new batteries include:
- The Barossa Council
- Rural City of Murray Bridge
- City of Playford
- City of Port Adelaide Enfield
- Port Pirie Regional Council
- City of West Torrens.
Community engagement
Community engagement, consultation, and local support are critical to the success of emPowering SA. The Government of South Australia and AGL together are committed to working with councils to ensure that local communities are heard and can have a say in where and how an emPowering SA battery is hosted in their area.
The following table details the status of community engagement for each local council that is working with the project team on hosting a community battery. This table is updated regularly.
| Council | Proposed site | Community engagement status | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| Campbelltown City Council | Tuku Wirra, Koongarra Court, Magill | Completed | https://connect2.campbelltown.sa.gov.au/communitybattery |
| City of Marion | Towers Terrace, Edwardstown | Completed | https://www.makingmarion.com.au/edwardstown-community-battery |
| The Barossa Council | To be advised | Planning | Nil |
| Rural City of Murray Bridge | To be advised | Planning | Nil |
| City of Playford | To be advised | Planning | Nil |
| City of Port Adelaide Enfield | To be advised | Planning | Nil |
| Port Pirie Regional Council | To be advised | Planning | Nil |
| City of West Torrens | To be advised | Planning | Nil |
Frequently asked questions
Community batteries are bigger than household batteries and smaller than utility scale batteries.
They are typically located within a local community and provide benefits both for that community and for the wider electricity grid.
They store excess energy from the grid when renewable energy is abundant. They then make that energy available at night, during periods of high demand, or when the grid needs support.
Community batteries can:
- lower electricity bills
- support more households to install rooftop solar
- allow households who cannot install solar panels to enjoy renewable energy
- reduce pressure on the electricity grid
- absorb excess energy that might cause voltage spikes in the electricity grid
- lower emissions.
The first two batteries, emPowering Magill and empowering Edwardstown, are located within perforated steel enclosures with metal roofs. The front wall of both enclosures is perforated to incorporate photography from the local community. Names of the photographers are acknowledged on plaques at each site.
All other batteries under emPowering SA use different technology and will consist of equipment located on two outdoor concrete slabs. One slab will be approximately 12 metres by 6 metres and will hold all battery equipment, and the other slab will be approximately 3 metres by 3 metres and hold a high voltage to low voltage transformer.
The larger slab will be surrounded by a fence, which the emPowering SA project team intends to design in conjunction with each Council to ensure it meets Council, community, and project expectations regarding visual amenity, security, and maintenance.
All equipment is rated for external conditions, meaning there is no need for roofing or shade structures.
The first two batteries, emPowering Magill and emPowering Edwardstown, both have a capacity of 150 kilowatts and 405 kilowatt-hours.
All other batteries under emPowering SA will each have a capacity of 700 kilowatts and 1,828 kilowatt-hours. Once all batteries are commissioned, the combined capacity of the fleet will be 11.5 megawatts and 30 megawatt-hours.
emPowering Magill is located on a portion of Tuku Wirra on Koongarra Court, Magill.
emPowering Edwardstown is located at Towers Terrace, Edwardstown, near the corner of Dumbarton Avenue.
With support from councils and local communities, other emPowering SA batteries will be located across metropolitan and regional South Australia.
Councils already working with us include The Barossa Council, Campbelltown City Council, City of Marion, Rural City of Murray Bridge, City of Playford, City of Port Adelaide Enfield, Port Pirie Regional Council, and City of West Torrens.
Proposed locations for batteries in these council areas will be published on this website and shared with the local communities as the project progresses.
All equipment is rated for outdoor installation and operation in Australian conditions. All batteries are also installed to provide necessary natural ventilation around key equipment.
Noise from the batteries will be limited to the operation of small ventilation fans and is expected to be well below environmental noise requirements, and likely inaudible, at nearby homes.
The energy storage technology of the batteries is certified to the most stringent safety standards for energy storage.
This includes lithium cell and battery safety standards IEC 62619:2022 and IEC 63056:2020, and grid connection, installation, and inverter standards AS/NZS 5139, AS/NZS 4777.2, AS 3000, and AS 3008.
In the unlikely event it is required, the battery cabinets also contain fire detection and an automatically activated fire suppression system.
No. Similar community batteries have been installed across Australia with no known interference.
Yes. AGL will carry out annual maintenance on the batteries in line with manufacturer’s recommendations.
The batteries are expected to have a 15 year life.
Every household in South Australia will benefit from emPowering SA through the grid stabilisation services they provide. They will also help us increase our use of renewable energy, reduce our emissions and meet our climate change targets.
Also, more than 10,000 South Australian government nominated households facing cost of living pressure will directly financially benefit from emPowering SA, through access to a retail electricity rate 25 percent below the Default Market Offer (DMO), the default price for electricity.
On current figures, a typical household benefitting from emPowering SA could save up to $575 off their annual electricity bill (based on the annual saving estimate for a new residential customer when compared to the DMO with an annual energy consumption of 4,000 kilowatt-hours per year).
There is no need for households to register their interest for emPowering SA. The South Australian government is following a detailed process to identify suitable homes to participate, and those households will receive information from the government to let them know their home has been shortlisted and how to join.
This ensures that emPowering SA enables the benefits of community batteries to be realised by local residents who are currently locked out from accessing renewable energy technologies, and for whom lower energy bills means the most.
There is no need for households to register their interest for emPowering SA.
The South Australian government is following a detailed process to identify suitable homes to participate, and those households will receive information from the government to let them know their home has been shortlisted and how to join.
Shortlisted homes will be contacted in a staged approach from the first half of 2025.
emPowering SA is jointly funded by the Government of South Australia, energy retailer AGL, and the Australian Government's Community Batteries for Household Solar program.
Councils work with the Government of South Australia and AGL to identify possible sites in their Local Government Area (LGA) to host a community battery, lead community engagement regarding the location of the battery (if required), and subject to successful completion of any community engagement, negotiate with the South Australian government to agree a Lease of land for the installation and provide advice regarding the Development Application.
The City of Campbelltown have completed these steps and supported emPowering Magill through a 15 year lease on the small portion of Tuku Wirra that the Magill battery is located on.
The City of Marion have also completed these steps and supported emPowering Edwardstown through a 15 year lease on the portion of land on Towers Terrace that the Edwardstown battery is located on.
The emPowering SA battery fleet will work together to deliver direct benefits over time to more than 10,000 South Australian government nominated households facing cost of living pressure.
These households will be able to access one of the lowest residential electricity rates in South Australia. On current figures, a typical household benefiting from emPowering SA could save up to $575 off their annual electricity bill.
This ensures that emPowering SA enables the benefits of community batteries to be realised by local residents who are currently locked out from accessing renewable energy technologies, and for whom lower energy bills means the most.
Over their operational life, emPowering SA is expected to deliver around $60 million of value direct to low-income and energy hardship households across South Australia, and even greater value to our electricity grid.
Knowledge from emPowering SA will also be shared to provide information on the real-world deployment and operation of community batteries for the benefit of future projects by the private sector and community
All emPowering SA community batteries will be owned by the Government of South Australia, and operated by energy retailer AGL as part of a virtual power plant (VPP).
There are a range of South Australian government programs and initiatives that can support households with their energy needs and energy bills:
Contact
For general information about emPowering SA, remember to review our frequently asked questions.
If you need further information or assistance:
Email
communitybatteries@sa.gov.au
Postal address
emPowering SA
GPO Box 618
Adelaide, South Australia 5001
Complaints and feedback
We understand that mistakes happen despite our best efforts. If you want to make a complaint or provide feedback, follow the information available at:
Complaints and feedback | Energy & Mining
