Dr Bin Lu
Senior Research Fellow, Australian National University
👉 About Me
📧 DrBinLu@gmail.com ·
@DrBinLu ·
linkedin.com/in/drbinlu ·
🌐 www.drbinlu.com
Latest Posts on X
Spoke at the Asia-Pacific Solar Research Conference on our recent work “Ultra-low-cost solar for economy-wide decarbonisation”.
Our key finding: Australia could unlock a 2000-gigawatt solar opportunity by decarbonising domestic industries and turning mineral exports into clean, value-added industries.
Slides here: https://drbinlu.com/apsrc2025
Excited to share our new ANU-HILT CRC study, “Decarbonising heavy industry operations with low-cost onsite photovoltaics and battery storage”, now published in Solar Energy.
This research shows how smarter integration of solar and batteries can help substantially cut industrial electricity costs and emissions.
Key findings:
1. Green electricity based on onsite solar and batteries can support 24/7 continuous industry operations and help cut carbon emissions by 35%–87%.
2. Electricity costs range from $90–$157/MWh at current technology costs to $71–$92/MWh under long-term cost projections.
3. Interactions with the grid could help lower electricity costs by 23%–42%, compared to off-grid systems.
4. Load flexibility through optimised system configurations could further reduce electricity costs to less than one-third of natural gas power.
ANU media release: https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/new-study-charts-smarter-path-to-24-7-renewable-power-for-heavy-industry
Full article: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0038092X25008679
Our new op-ed is now live in The Canberra Times!
Australia is a global leader in solar R&D and deployment (>1.5 kW per capita).
With ultra-low-cost solar, we can turn sunlight into jet fuel at scale — cutting emissions and powering new industries.
Full article here: http://drbinlu.com/jetfuel
🔬 Research Highlights
ANU-HILT CRC study charts smarter path to 24/7 renewable power for heavy industry.
Plug in. Heat up. Your city becomes a giant battery.
FIRM = Flexible. Integrated. Responsive. Massive. — unlocking system-wide flexibility for grid stability.
Exploring the feasibility and benefits of a fully renewable power system across ASEAN.
Techno-economic modelling of Australia's pathways to net-zero emissions.
Analysed high-renewable electricity scenarios for the SWIS.
Developed STORES: a global tool for identifying high-potential pumped hydro sites.
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📬 Contact
📧 Email: DrBinLu@gmail.com
X (Twitter): @DrBinLu
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/drbinlu
🌐 Website: www.drbinlu.com
📍 Location: Canberra, Australia