Werner Theinert: "The question is no longer whether – but when – to make the switch."
By Werner Theinert
Since my previous article, The Power Trip Speeds Up (July 17, 2025), the Cheaper Home Batteries Program has gone crazy. More than 200,000 home battery systems have been installed nationwide, with a total installed capacity of the combined systems touching 5GWh in the last few weeks. We are no longer in “first adopter” territory.
In fact, it’s become so popular that the Federal Government will be changing the rules on the May 1 to reduce the 30% discount on the larger battery systems.
I’ve been busy doing presentations for various community organisations, and for friends and neighbours. Discussing solar PV, home batteries, electric vehicles (EVs) and resilience to power outages and communications failures.
Since my previous article, The Power Trip Speeds Up (July 17, 2025), the Cheaper Home Batteries Program has gone crazy. More than 200,000 home battery systems have been installed nationwide, with a total installed capacity of the combined systems touching 5GWh in the last few weeks. We are no longer in “first adopter” territory.
In fact, it’s become so popular that the Federal Government will be changing the rules on the May 1 to reduce the 30% discount on the larger battery systems.
I’ve been busy doing presentations for various community organisations, and for friends and neighbours. Discussing solar PV, home batteries, electric vehicles (EVs) and resilience to power outages and communications failures.
The Energy Resilient Community Hubs program, introduced by the Bass Coast Shire Council after the blackouts of February 2023, has resulted in 10 community centres being provided with solar PV, batteries and Starlink systems, thereby enabling power, communications and data in the event of another extended outage of power and communications.
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To EV or not to EV?
That question was answered recently by the crazy war started by the USA and Israel in the Middle East. The blocking of the Straits of Hormuz and the destruction of oil, gas, water, fertiliser and aluminium production infrastructure will be felt by the world economy for many years to come. Even if the Strait is opened tomorrow, it will be a very slow return to previous normal production levels. |
Record month for EV uptake in Victoria Dept of Energy, Environment and Climate Action |
The shortage of fossil fuel products, particularly for our region, has sent fuel prices rising rapidly. This has seen a rise in both used EV sales and new car order books. At the beginning of March there were around 4000+ new and used electric vehicles being advertised on Carsales just for Victoria. This has dropped to approximately 1800. With a lot of those vehicles being orders for new vehicles, not used EVs.
I recently sold our BYD Seal, which at the time was in a group six to eight cars of that particular model. There is now only one left in that group. The second-hand EV Market was becoming more affordable with many cars to choose from, particularly with the large number of new EV models being introduced this year. Interesting times we live in!
I feel a lot of people who had been contemplating the move to an electric vehicle, and their resilience to external influences such as fuel price volatility, are finally taking the plunge.
EV sales reached 11.8% of the new market share of Australia in February, and that’s before the Middle East turmoil started. (11,134 BEV’s from a total new car market of 94,131 units for February). I can’t wait to see the March, April and May figures.
The electric revolution has also moved into the trucking and transportation industry, with major moves by:
Then there’s the Australian company called Janus Electric who are converting existing diesel prime movers (heavy trucks) into electric trucks using a patented swappable battery system.
Then there are the electric buses which are taking over our cities. Victoria, Queensland & WA have stated that all new buses from 2025 will be 100% electric, with NSW already having a fleet of over 220 electric buses currently in service.
The electric revolution is happening right now! The tipping point has been reached and is only gaining momentum.
I recently sold our BYD Seal, which at the time was in a group six to eight cars of that particular model. There is now only one left in that group. The second-hand EV Market was becoming more affordable with many cars to choose from, particularly with the large number of new EV models being introduced this year. Interesting times we live in!
I feel a lot of people who had been contemplating the move to an electric vehicle, and their resilience to external influences such as fuel price volatility, are finally taking the plunge.
EV sales reached 11.8% of the new market share of Australia in February, and that’s before the Middle East turmoil started. (11,134 BEV’s from a total new car market of 94,131 units for February). I can’t wait to see the March, April and May figures.
The electric revolution has also moved into the trucking and transportation industry, with major moves by:
- Volvo FH & FM Electric (to be manufactured in Australia)
- Windrose Technology
- Mercedes Benz eActros
- Fuso eCanter
- Scania S25P
Then there’s the Australian company called Janus Electric who are converting existing diesel prime movers (heavy trucks) into electric trucks using a patented swappable battery system.
Then there are the electric buses which are taking over our cities. Victoria, Queensland & WA have stated that all new buses from 2025 will be 100% electric, with NSW already having a fleet of over 220 electric buses currently in service.
The electric revolution is happening right now! The tipping point has been reached and is only gaining momentum.
What’s slowing down the transition to electrifying everything?
We have a large number of both state and federal regulators who control and make the rules and regulations by which the electricity market will be operated:
That’s a lot of ducks to line up to reach a final agreement on how we move forward.
They are still busy trying to work out how the new distributed energy system is going to work with the addition of 200,000 home batteries and inverters. Not to mention the possibility of controlling all those new batteries on wheels through their bidirectional chargers.
We have a large number of both state and federal regulators who control and make the rules and regulations by which the electricity market will be operated:
- Australian Energy Regulator (AER): The Enforcer
- Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC): The Rule maker
- Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO): The Operator
- The Essential Services Commission ESC Victoria)
- Energy Advisory Pane (EAP): Coordinates advice to all the above to ensure system security
- Clean Energy Regulator (CER): responsible for accelerating carbon emissions reduction
That’s a lot of ducks to line up to reach a final agreement on how we move forward.
They are still busy trying to work out how the new distributed energy system is going to work with the addition of 200,000 home batteries and inverters. Not to mention the possibility of controlling all those new batteries on wheels through their bidirectional chargers.
Bidirectional charging from EVs will be a game changer
Imagine if one million of Australia’s 20 million vehicles were connected to the grid through their own bidirectional charger capable of importing or exporting at a rate of 10kW -
1,000,000 Vehicles X 10,000 Watts = 10,000,000,000 Watts = 10GW. (See my previous essay for a fuller explanation of bidirectional charging.)
Progress on the Wersula Electrify Everything adventure
We got Earthworker Energy Manufacturing Cooperative (who make the best stainless steel hot water tanks) from Morwell to install a heat pump onto our existing Earthworker hot water system thereby replacing the original solar vacuum tube heater whose pump kept misbehaving. The monthly energy curves have been completely flattened, and it will be interesting to see how we go through the winter months.
Notice the 6.85kWh - $1.37 (20cents/kWh off-peak) consumed on March 17? I wanted the car to be fully charged overnight for the return trip to Traralgon, as I wanted to see how well the 2019 Nissan Leaf’s 62kWh Battery is ageing after 78,000kms. The result was almost the same figures as we had in 2020, no discernible deterioration.
1,000,000 Vehicles X 10,000 Watts = 10,000,000,000 Watts = 10GW. (See my previous essay for a fuller explanation of bidirectional charging.)
Progress on the Wersula Electrify Everything adventure
We got Earthworker Energy Manufacturing Cooperative (who make the best stainless steel hot water tanks) from Morwell to install a heat pump onto our existing Earthworker hot water system thereby replacing the original solar vacuum tube heater whose pump kept misbehaving. The monthly energy curves have been completely flattened, and it will be interesting to see how we go through the winter months.
Notice the 6.85kWh - $1.37 (20cents/kWh off-peak) consumed on March 17? I wanted the car to be fully charged overnight for the return trip to Traralgon, as I wanted to see how well the 2019 Nissan Leaf’s 62kWh Battery is ageing after 78,000kms. The result was almost the same figures as we had in 2020, no discernible deterioration.
In conclusion, we have developed the technology to produce vast quantities of renewable energy from various sources –
These sources of renewable energy will enable us to manufacture the following materials -
The race is on. We’ve got to get off fossil fuels now!
We haven’t been to a petrol station in over two years – Oh what a feeling!
- Solar PV (plus storage)
- Wind turbines (plus their own storage)
- Batteries on wheels (EVs) connected to bidirectional chargers
- Heat pumps for cooling and heating – domestic and industrial.
- Pumped hydro electricity
- Geothermal (next gen advance drilling – horizontal & millimetre wave)
These sources of renewable energy will enable us to manufacture the following materials -
- Green steel (without the use of metallurgical coal)
- Alumina from bauxite (without burning fossil fuel)
- Green aluminium (using a new inert anode technology developed by Elysis, no carbon anodes therefore no CO2)
- Green cement (Sublime Systems)
- Green transport (it’s happening)
- Coal sales will fall
- LNG sales will fall
The race is on. We’ve got to get off fossil fuels now!
We haven’t been to a petrol station in over two years – Oh what a feeling!
All-electric living