Smart inverter development partnership
By Global Infrastructure Sherpa · Feb 25, 2026
Renewable Energy Integration Facility (REIF)
Project
CSIRO's Renewable Energy Integration Facility has supported major innovation projects including smart inverter development with Google X.
Deal Analysis
This partnership between CSIRO, Google X, and EnergyAustralia focuses on smart inverter development for solar energy integration in Australia. The collaboration leverages CSIRO's Renewable Energy Integration Facility and Google X's innovation capabilities, with EnergyAustralia potentially providing a pathway to commercial deployment. While the financial details remain undisclosed, the partnership signifies a commitment to advancing solar technology and grid integration solutions within the Australian energy market. The involvement of a major energy retailer like EnergyAustralia suggests a focus on practical application and scalability of the developed smart inverter technology.
The deal is strategically important for Australia's renewable energy transition, as smart inverters play a crucial role in managing the increasing penetration of solar power into the grid. By enhancing grid stability and enabling more efficient energy distribution, this partnership could contribute to a more reliable and sustainable energy system. The collaboration between a research institution (CSIRO), a technology innovator (Google X), and an energy provider (EnergyAustralia) creates a synergistic environment for developing and deploying cutting-edge solar energy solutions.
- Partnership between CSIRO, Google X, and EnergyAustralia.
- Focus on smart inverter development for solar energy integration.
- Leverages CSIRO's Renewable Energy Integration Facility.
- EnergyAustralia's involvement suggests a focus on commercial deployment.
Market Context: Australia is actively pursuing renewable energy targets, with solar power playing a significant role. Smart inverters are essential for managing the variability and intermittency of solar energy, ensuring grid stability and reliability.
Source Intelligence
KEY DETAILS
The $3 million upgrade more than doubles the facility’s power testing capacity, introduces improved high‑resolution data capture and adds advanced grid and battery emulation tools, programmable inverters and real time hardware in the loop simulation for large scale, real‑world experiments.
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Deal Size
CSIRO unveils $3M upgrade to flagship renewable energy lab
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Location
CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, today officially launched the $3 million upgrade of its Renewable Energy Integration Facility (REIF) at its Energy Centre in Newcastle
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Announcement
25 February 2026
PARTIES MENTIONED IN SOURCE
C
CSIRO
developer
"CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, today officially launched the $3 million upgrade of its Renewable Energy Integration Facility (REIF)"
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Google X
developer
"The facility has supported major innovation projects including smart inverter development with Google X"
high quality
Enriched Feb 25, 2026
Market Context
This deal is part of the Solar sector in Australia.
1 of 452 Solar deals tracked this month · Updated daily