Supply chains could continue to place a major obstacle in front of Australia’s energy transition with revelations of the global constraints on transmission cable and transformers.
The Utilities for Net Zero Alliance (UNEZA) a global utility group, says the global energy transition will need 90,000 kilometres of transmission cable and more than 270 high-voltage transformers by 2030.
But UNEZA says these figures dwarf current manufacturing capacity, with transformer waiting times alone now exceeding three years.
“Manufacturing bottlenecks and raw material constraints are emerging as the defining obstacles to the pace and cost of grid expansion,” it said in a statement.
UNEZA is led by UK utility SSE and Abu Dhabi-based TAQA under the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions.
Next steps
The industry leaders agreed to work towards harmonising fragmented equipment standards, and offering greater demand visibility as the electrification agenda takes the centre.
TAQA Transmission – Chief Strategy & Investment Officer, Khalifa Al Mheiri, said delivering the energy transition at the pace depends on the ability to strengthen and modernise global supply chains.
“Collaboration across the value chain will be fundamental to building resilient electricity systems that support long-term energy security and net-zero ambitions.”
“Through UNEZA, utilities are taking practical action to improve coordination, harmonise technical approaches and explore pooled procurement models that provide greater certainty for suppliers while helping utilities deliver critical infrastructure faster, more efficiently and at lower cost.
International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Director-General of the Francesco La Camera, said resilient supply chains would be essential in reaching a global electrification target of 35 per cent by 2035
“As electrification takes centre stage in the next phase of the transition, IRENA is calling for Initiatives such as the Utilities for Net Zero Alliance and the Global Clean Power Alliance to show the value of governments, utilities and industry working together to accelerate progress while enhancing energy security and system resilience.”
The to-do list
The group also highlighted five priorities to strengthen supply chain resilience and provide manufacturers with greater long-term certainty;
- Publishing annual utility demand signals and joint targets as investment outlooks to provide manufacturers with greater visibility of future equipment demand.
- Working towards harmonisation of equipment and interconnection standards in collaboration with international standards organisations and industry partners.
- Supporting pooled procurement and demand aggregation initiatives to unlock economies of scale and reduce supply chain risks.
- Developing harmonised technical specifications for critical transmission equipment to simplify procurement and improve interoperability.
- Advancing collaborative industry programmes to accelerate technology validation, innovation and deployment across the electricity sector.
The supply chain roadmap will continue to be developed with utilities, manufacturers, international organisations and governments ahead of COP31, supporting global efforts to strengthen energy security, build more resilient electricity systems and accelerate the deployment of clean energy infrastructure worldwide.
