The Gap Battery
Back in 2022, The Gap was named a priority site for a shared community battery, a project that would let local households, including renters and people without solar, tap into cheaper, cleaner power. Four years on, that battery still doesn't exist.
Residents have been told different things by Brisbane City Council about why, while behind closed doors they quietly blocked the project. It's time for straight answers about what a community battery actually is, why The Gap hasn't got one yet, and what's standing in the way.
What is a community battery?
A community battery is a shared battery, roughly the size of a family fridge or a small vehicle, installed on local land such as a park or a road reserve.
It captures the excess solar power generated by nearby rooftops during the day and feeds it back out to the local area in the evening, when households need it most and grid power is at its priciest.
Instead of every home needing to buy and install its own battery, a whole street or neighbourhood shares access to one system, spreading the benefits of solar storage further than rooftop solar can reach on its own.
What a community battery actually does
A community battery is a neighbourhood-scale battery connected to the local electricity network. It helps:
Store local solar instead of wasting it
Support cheaper electricity by shifting energy from “sunny surplus” hours to “expensive peak” hours
Reduce emissions by replacing peak-time fossil generation with stored renewables
Improve local reliability by easing pressure on the network at busy times
It’s practical climate action that also eases household budgets now.
What happened in The Gap
From Council’s own correspondence, BCC’s position was clear: it did not support installing the proposed batteries (pole-mounted or ground-based) on Council-controlled land in The Gap. That message matters because it helps explain why progress stalled locally, even as similar projects moved ahead elsewhere.
Meanwhile, other suburbs weren’t treated the same
In the same thread, Council noted it had worked with Energy Queensland / EQL to progress approvals for installations in Moorooka and Coorparoo. So Brisbane can do community batteries - apparently just not in The Gap.
Why this matters for The Gap
This isn’t abstract “climate policy.” It’s about:
Lower bills by using more local renewable energy when it’s needed most
A fair go: The Gap shouldn’t miss out while other suburbs progress
Community respect: locals deserve genuine consultation, not a closed-door “no” with no pathway forward
What we’re pushing for
As a Labor member who cares about the environment and cost of living, I’m advocating for:
A clear, public explanation of why BCC blocked Council-land options in The Gap
A genuine local consultation process on feasible sites and design (amenity, safety, landscaping, access)
A workable pathway to get the project moving again — not endless buck-passing
WHAT YOU CAN DO
If you’ve made it this far and want to help force Brisbane City Council to rethink their opposition to a Community Solar Battery in The Gap, please sign the petition on this page.
Additionally, please email Councillor Steve Toomey’s Ward office expressing your support for a Community Battery in The Gap: thegap.ward@bcc.qld.gov.au
Timeline
Labor pledges $200m for 400 community batteries, The Gap named
During the 2022 federal election campaign, the Australian Labor Party pledges $200 million under its Powering Australia policy to fund 400 community batteries nationwide. The Gap, in the federal seat of Ryan, is designated one of 58 pre-determined locations to receive a $500,000 grant.
Funding formally allocated
The Albanese Government delivers the $200 million commitment in the October 2022–23 Federal Budget. Responsibility splits between the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water ($30.6m for the 58 election commitments) and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency ($188.5m for the remaining 342 batteries).
Grant guidelines released
Energy Minister Chris Bowen announces the Grant Opportunity Guidelines for Stream 1, delivery of the 58 election-commitment batteries. Applications, including The Gap's, are set to open 30 January 2023.
Energex applies for the grant
The Stream 1 application window opens. Energex (Energy Queensland) submits for the $500,000 federal grant to build and connect The Gap's battery, two days before the window closes on 24 February.
Toomey raises fire safety, internally, before any site is assessed
Councillor Steven Toomey (LNP, The Gap Ward) emails Ward Office staff at 4:38pm. No site has been assessed yet. Nothing is said publicly.
"We need to have a city wide approach to the possible installation of community batteries on Council land. Personally I have little faith in the safety of community batteries and serious concerns around the liability of same on the rate payers of Brisbane should a fire happen."
BCC signs a non-binding letter of support
Brisbane City Council agrees, on paper, to partner with Energex on finding battery sites. It commits to nothing specific. Fortnightly meetings begin between BCC staff and Energy Queensland to find viable locations in The Gap and Newmarket. This is the high point of council cooperation.
Toomey cites Rockhampton and Geelong fires
Toomey restates his objections to Energy Queensland in two separate emails. Modern community batteries use LFP cells with markedly lower thermal-runaway risk than the older NMC chemistry involved in both cited incidents; the distinction is never raised with residents.
1 Dec 2023, 12:09pm: "I must admit that my confidence in the safety of community is very low and I do struggle to support the installation of community batteries. My concerns are based on following; The volume of reported batteries catching on fire around the world. I've been told that QFES are not equipped or have the resources to contain battery fires. The toxic fumes and intense heat released by a battery fire. The Queensland Government lack of mapping where private batteries are installed on private land to protect the QFES and community."
5 Dec 2023, 8:51am: "I must admit my confidence in community batteries is just not there, given the battery fires reported in the media in Rockhampton and Geelong. My concerns remain."
Sites assessed, none satisfy council requirements
Fortnightly meetings continue. Multiple locations across The Gap and Newmarket are checked against council criteria. The RTI record doesn't preserve which sites, or why each failed.
Energy Queensland stops attending
EQ stops attending the fortnightly meetings after exhausting every alternative available on council land. BCC's later account frames this as EQ failing to propose options; EQ had simply run out of council-approved ground to propose.
BCC rejects every site type, in both suburbs
Brad Wilson, BCC's General Manager for Natural Environment, Water and Sustainability, emails Energy Queensland at 12:11pm. The council-land pathway ends here.
"As discussed, Council does not support the installation of batteries proposed as part of this project, either pole-mounted or ground-based, on Council-controlled land in The Gap or Newmarket."
BCC's internal talking points omit the fire-safety concern entirely
A staff and councillor briefing document, attached to an email from the Lord Mayor's Office on 4 April 2025 at 4:51pm. Toomey's February 2023 and December 2023 fire-safety objections, the earliest and most consistent driver of opposition, appear nowhere in it. The document does confirm Energy Queensland successfully delivered batteries in Moorooka and Coorparoo, undercutting any suggestion the council-land requirement is unworkable in principle.
"Council had regular discussions with Energy Queensland and provided timely feedback as landowner on the requirements for installations of batteries at the proposed sites. This collaborative process enabled Energy Queensland to progress community battery installations in Moorooka and Coorparoo."
"Energy Queensland was not able to identify further suitable sites that balance both the community and broader requirements of this type of new installation. Council has encouraged Energy Queensland to identify alternative sites, and to explore consideration of options in other suburbs to achieve the project intent."
"Energy Queensland stopped participating in scheduled fortnightly collaborative meetings with Council in September of last year. The last meeting was on 10th September 2024, and subsequent meetings to the end of the year were not attended by Energy Queensland."
Residents are told a different story again
A resident emails Cr Toomey on 1 June 2025. Toomey replies on 3 June at 2:07pm, framing the refusal around park land use and site suitability rather than confirming or correcting the green-space explanation, and giving no clarity on alternative sites.
Resident, 1 Jun 2025: "I understand the original proposed location of the The Gap community battery was declined on the grounds of loss of green space."
Toomey, 3 Jun 2025, 2:07pm: "I understand the application to install community batteries in park land use was put forward by The Gap Sustainability Initiative to the Federal Government." … "The Gap Sustainability Initiative is the responsible application and I am currently not aware of a new location they may have in mind or selected."
Toomey: no new sites, on the record
Toomey states publicly he's unaware of any new sites being considered, consistent with the internal record. The RTI document coverage ends here.
Narrabri: the same pattern, documented elsewhere
ABC News publishes an investigation into how outdated fire-safety misinformation killed a community battery project in Narrabri. The Gap Sustainability Initiative later cites it as directly analogous.
TGSI re-engages the electorate office
Michael Boley (Treasurer and Community Energy Lead, The Gap Sustainability Initiative) confirms The Gap is still listed as "in progress" on the federal DCCEEW grant page, alongside Noosaville, Newmarket and Nundah, and proposes going directly to federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen.
Community representatives put the case to the Minister
At Grove Social, Ashgrove, TGSI, Solar Citizens and SOWN representatives join Jonty Bush on a call with Minister Chris Bowen, who speaks to the community groups about what a success the battery program has been in other areas and what a path forward for The Gap could look like.
The Western Echo puts the obstruction pattern on the record
Jonty's monthly newsletter confirms the pattern for constituents: council has "continued to reject" Energy Queensland's proposed sites since the 2022 federal commitment, and close to $500,000 in funding is already committed to a project that still has nowhere to go.