Renewable Energy Workshop
Date: 6th October 2022 | 8.30am to 1:00pm
On Thursday 6th October at our combined Irrigation Australia Conference and the 24th ICID International Congress, we are holding a Renewable Energy Workshop titled “The Energy Transition and Agriculture Workshop’.
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Energy is a significant component of on-farm operating costs and as such, the Workshop will address several factors influencing this important issue for Australian agriculture including the road to Net Zero.
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Agriculture is set to prosper from Australia’s energy transformation. If planned well, farmers will cut costs, reduce emissions and build business resilience both through on-farm adoption of renewables and hosting large scale solar and wind developments.
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Join this session to learn about how farmers are taking advantage of renewables, what else can be done to support their transition, how microgrids could be enabled by a modernised grid and what’s on the horizon for agriculture including energy storage, hydrogen and electric farm vehicles.
Coordinator / Chair of the Workshop
Karin Stark is Director at Farm Renewables Consulting
We are very fortunate in securing Karin’s expertise who will coordinate and chair the workshop. Karin’s international and professional history combines 20 years of engagement with communities around contemporary environmental issues such as waste, sustainable travel and clean energy. She has a degree in Environmental Science and Sustainable Development and worked in WA before moving to the UK and finally settled back in Australia at the family’s farm in Narromine NSW. Australia’s largest solar diesel irrigation pump was installed on her farm in 2018 and she founded the National Renewables in Agriculture Conference and Expo in 2019 to share their story and help others take advantage of the benefits renewables provide.
Overview of the Energy Transition in Australia
Keynote Speaker Ken Baldwin, Australian National University (ANU)
The inaugural Director of the Energy Change Institute at the ANU and is winner of the 2004 Australian Government Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science, for his role in initiating and championing “Science meets Parliament”. Professor Baldwin has held the following appointments: Project Steering Committee for the Australian Energy Technology Assessment (AETA); Board of the South East Region of Renewable Energy Excellence (SERREE, from 2014); Chair, Energy Cluster of the Australia-Indonesia Centre (2015-2018) and Steering Committee for the CSIRO Hydrogen Research, Development and Demonstration Report (2019).
Delegate Registrations
Energy Storage in an Irrigation Scheme
Presented by Greg McCarron, Central Irrigation Trust and Matt Schultz, Enel X
Matt Schultz is the Head of Energy Storage (ANZ) at Enel X
Enel X is a future utility delivering energy transition pathways for businesses, government and households to decarbonise our energy and transport systems.
We operate the largest Virtual Power plant in Australia, with 300MW of customer-sited flexible assets across energy markets, capacity reserves programs and FCAS today, and are recognised as one of the worlds leading C&I battery system integrators.
Solar Pumping Solutions - Case Study
Presented by Sam Ryder and James Stacey
Sam Ryder is the Area Managing Director Oceania at GRUNDFOS
Sam has twenty-five years’ experience within the industry with international leadership and management experience in managing change and delivering sustainable growth.
James Stacey, Irrigator
James is an irrigator living an hour from Adelaide in South Australia, grows hay, grain, livestock and was a Nuffield Scholar in 2018. His report named “Growing pains: Securing agriculture’s future in peri-urban areas’ looked at the impact of urban sprawl on agricultural land and productivity.
Ammonia Production On-Farm possibilities & challenges
Dr Emma Lovell, is a Lecturer and Researcher in Chemical Engineering at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) working in sustainable energy solutions.
Emma is a previous recipient of the EnergyLab Women in Clean Energy Fellowship; a program to inspire, educate and support women to start climate start-ups. She is currently Associate Editor of the Chemical Engineering Journal.
Future Tech – What’s on the Horizon for Ag
Presented by Liz Fletcher and Neil Thompson
Liz Fltecher is the Managing Director at Birdwood business energy
Liz heads up the Birdwood Business Energy team delivering net zero solutions at commercial and industrial sites across the National Electricity Market. Liz has spent more than a decade traversing the energy sector and growing businesses that help the transition to net zero. Over the years, her marketing, policy and strategic skills have been put to use at TransGrid, Flow Power, the Energy Security Board and others. In her spare time, she is the Marketing and Communications Expert on the Energy Efficiency Council board and sits on the Advisory Panel for the Business Renewable Centre.
Dr Neil Thompson, ITM-Power
Neil has undertaken award-winning research at QUT Australia and KIT Germany in his role as Adjunct Associate Professor with the Institute for Future Environments (IFE). His work in the field of integrated hydrogen energy systems has been regularly published in the USA and Europe leading to his recent appointment as Managing Director of ITM Power Pty Ltd for the APAC region. Since then he has developed a number of local reference sites for ITM’s rapid response PEM electrolysers across the mobility, renewable chemistry and power to gas sectors in partnership with key international clients.
Microgrids – sharing energy between farms
Madison Sturgess, Queensland Farmers Federation
Madison is a cleantech specialist and media producer with experience across tech start-ups, agriculture, film and TV and international development sectors. Her cleantech experience includes developing microgrids and clean energy cooking alternatives with rural Haitian communities by way of Washing DC. Madison currently works with Queensland Farmers’ Federation driving the research, feasibility and implementation of microgrid projects for regional communities.
Agrivoltaics – combining solar and farming for dual benefit
Anne Dansey is Senior Policy Advisor – Energy, at Agriculture Victoria.
Anne has over 20 years-experience in policy and is currently leading the Agriculture Energy Investment Plan, a $30 million Victorian government initiative partnering with industry to build a more resilient, energy efficient and internally competitive agriculture sector. The program has been re-funded by another $30 million and expanded in scope to include water efficiency, circular economy, whole-of -farm energy productivity and support of bioenergy and hydrogen fuel opportunities on farm. Anne is a big picture person with a reputation for delivering transformative value to partnerships. Her passion is in bringing disparate issues together to build the capacity of all participants and build cohesive, lasting policy outcomes.
Electric Vehicles
Greg McGarvie is the Managing Director of ACE Vehicles, Australian EV.
Greg has a background in business, marine education and training sciences. He was instrumental in the early development of a number of regional and international environmental organisations. Together with business partner Will Qiang, their businesses have included - Energy Management Planning - Low Energy Lighting Solutions and since 2015 Utility Scale Solar and Storage - Electric Vehicle Manufacturing - Ecosystem Development - virtual storage networks. The Australian assembled ACE Cargo, was launched by Dr John Hewson at the Sydney International Convention Centre. ACE-EV Group is part of a Global Strategy with German and Taiwanese corporate partners. The vehicle will be available to see.
Water Energy Nexus
John O’Connor is Energy Research Officer at NSW DPI
John has a Masters of Science degree in Agriculture with the University of Sydney and has held senior roles with the Local Land Services in NSW and prior to that as a RMO with NSW Agriculture. John’s skillsets include sustainable agriculture and agronomy.
How Renewables can Unlock Water Security
Joel is General Manager – Innovation & Design at Davey Water Products
Joel has a Graduate Certificate of Science, Astronomy: Master of Philosophy, Advanced Composite Materials and Bachelor of Systems Engineering / Bachelor Information Technology. Joel heads up the innovation function in Davey which includes a dedicated ‘nucleus hub’ of specialists and strategists. His skillsets include Innovation Management, Product Development and Business Intelligence. .