Analyst Insight: How Australia Used Non-Wires Alternatives to Improve Its Power Grid

Non-wires alternatives (NWA) make use of distributed energy resources (DER) to provide grid relief necessary to avoid or defer traditional grid infrastructure investments. Globally, the US NWA market is the largest, due in part to the growing number of regulatory requirements at the state level. A larger push is underway worldwide, resulting from cooperation between all key stakeholders including regulators, legislators, utilities, and customers. Developing a business case for NWA projects can often be challenging because of existing market frameworks, technology regulations, and incentive structures.  

However, encouraging NWAs can lead to a cleaner, less congested grid, which is flexible enough to respond to changes in supply and demand. NWAs can be particularly useful in remote, rugged, isolated, or densely populated areas where traditional grid infrastructure may be limited. A supportive regulatory environment must be designed to further encourage NWA development, and strong customer engagement strategies must be employed to take full advantage of demand side resources. 

The Guidehouse Insights Non-Wires Alternatives Tracker provides a comprehensive and up-to-date database of global NWA projects. Information provided for projects tracked includes project name, utility, size, cost, included technologies, status, and more details when available. The most recent tracker was published in 2Q 2022. This accompanying Analyst Insight report focuses on how Australia improved its power grid using NWA.