Data-driven substations, advanced simulation hubs and digital grid software are hard-coding resilience into Australia’s energy transition.
Australia’s energy system is changing rapidly. More than four million rooftop solar systems now pepper the nation’s suburban homes – producing more than 12 per cent of the country’s total energy in 2024.
At the same time, the energy system’s fossil-fuelled backbone is ageing, with up to 90 per cent of the National Electricity Market’s coal-fired power stations due to retire before 2035 – and the last units gone before 2040. Demand is increasing too, especially with the rising popularity of EVs.
These challenges aren’t unique to Australia alone. Speaking on the Green Energy Futures podcast, Siemens Grid Software CEO, Sabine Erlinghagen, said grid operators worldwide are facing mounting pressure to meet this shift head-on.
She points to challenges faced by a distribution operator in Norway.
“They told us they needed to double their grid capacity in seven years – essentially rebuilding in less than a decade what had taken 100 years to establish. That’s simply not possible,” she said.
That is, without approaching the capacity challenge from another angle – digitally.
Rather than continuing to build out traditional infrastructure, Ms Erlinghagen advocates for a new paradigm – one that’s human-centric, data-rich and focused on local optimisation.
“We’re still underestimating how fast distributed resources like PVs and EVs will grow,” she said.
“If we don’t manage that change intelligently, the grid simply won’t keep up.”
Flipping the script with Gridscale X
Gridscale X represents Siemens’ next leap in managing complexity across the energy transition. The software complements Siemens’ PSS® portfolio – used by more than 70 per cent of the global electricity industry – by providing a digital layer that integrates planning, operation and optimisation of modern grids.
“Gridscale X is designed to think of the grid from the bottom up, with a view to plan, operate and maintain grids autonomously,” Ms Erlinghagen said.
“Traditionally, grid operators controlled a few big power plants. Now, we think of every rooftop solar array or electric vehicle as a small power plant – but we can’t control the sun or human behaviour. So we need to manage energy flows differently, using real-time data, behavioural insights, and storage technologies.”
Gridscale X provides distribution operators with digital twins and transparency tools that enable smarter decisions, fast. It can also help squeeze more from existing infrastructure, while accounting for the unpredictability of distributed resources – rather than relying on endless capacity expansion.
In Australia, where distributed energy resources like rooftop solar are particularly prevalent, the ability to shift load in real-time without costly infrastructure upgrades could be a game-changer.
In New South Wales, Siemens technology is helping power the Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone, where ACEREZ – a joint venture between ACCIONA, COBRA and Endeavour Energy – is deploying 16 digital substations and next-generation grid simulation software.
Part of the Gridscale X portfolio, the software enables faster, more scalable grid planning, while the digital substations are expected to cut copper usage by up to 90 per cent and halve project timelines – supporting the region’s goal to unlock 4.5GW of capacity
Less copper, more fibre
Another part of the solution is to turn kilometres of analogue copper into streams of fibre-borne data, as Endeavour Energy has done at South Erskine Park Zone Substation, in a fast-growing industrial precinct on Sydney’s western fringe. Rather than replicate a traditional copper-heavy design, Endeavour partnered with Siemens to build the utility’s first digital substation.
According to Endeavour Energy Secondary Systems Manager, Ray Robinson, the key benefits included faster commissioning, less excavation and a significant reduction in copper and concrete usage.
“In this instance, we reduced approximately 7.5km of copper cabling and all of the associated trenching and labour to terminate,” he said.
“Our digital substation design also saw a significant reduction in concrete usage compared to traditional brick and mortar builds.”
These benefits cumulate in considerable cost savings, while also limiting environmental impact – a big part of why Endeavour Energy expects South Erskine Park Zone Substation to be the first of many.
Endeavour Energy CEO, Guy Chalkley, said the project’s success is testament to the values shared by his company and Siemens.
“We both want to get a really good outcome for the customer, and we both want to build something that’s very sustainable for the future,” he said.
Modelling the future
While service providers modernise field assets, Australia also needs a workforce fluent in grid digital twins. Enter the Energy Transition Hub at Swinburne University of Technology: a $5.2 million laboratory running Siemens’ PSS® software suite. The goal: graduate engineers who can hit the ground running on tomorrow’s energy planning problems.
The hub provides a digital twin of Australia’s electricity network, enabling users to map scenarios, test ideas, and review results before anything is built. Commercial R&D teams can trial new equipment, software, and operating strategies, while researchers, students, and industry partners work together on cleaner, more efficient grid designs using Siemens Xcelerator, the company’s open digital platform and marketplace.
Siemens Australia and New Zealand CEO, Peter Halliday, said that collaboration between industry and academia is critical to driving better outcomes on key topics of national importance such as the energy transition.
“The Hub is a great example of how the best minds can collaborate to help shape the future,” he said.
“The electricity grids in Australia play a pivotal role in the nation’s journey to net zero. They are critical to us, as a nation, looking at our combined impact beyond just reducing the one per cent of emissions we are responsible for.
“Ultimately, people want a resilient grid delivering constant power – one that is sustainable and efficient. The pathways to this are ensuring digitalisation at the heart of the grid, in the substations to increase the availability, reliability, and sustainability of the entire power supply, and staying ahead of expectations by simulating what the future could look like.”
