Malcolm Turnbull and Tesla co-founder Elon Musk have had an "in-depth" discussion about energy storage solutions after the tech billionaire promised to solve South Australian's energy problems in 100 days.
The pair spoke for an hour on Sunday afternoon during which they "picked each others brains" about energy storage solutions for the nation.
"They had an in-depth discussion on the value of storage and the future of the electricity system," a spokesperson from the Prime Minister's Office told Huffpost Australia.
Thanks @elonmusk for a great in depth discussion today about energy storage and it's role in delivering affordable & reliable electricity
— Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) March 12, 2017
The Prime Minister's Office said Turnbull and Musk agreed to be in contact in the future.
The Prime Minister thanked Musk on Twitter on Sunday afternoon, saying the pair talked about energy storage and its role in delivering affordable and reliable electricity.
Musk replied to say he was "very excited" to talk about "renewables and storage".
You're most welcome. Very exciting to discuss the future of electricity. Renewables + storage arguably biggest disruption since DC to AC. https://t.co/7uXoUQf29f
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 12, 2017
Thanks Elon. That's why I asked our clean energy finance agencies to focus on storage - vital now w generation more distributed & variable. https://t.co/T81Zi7CSo4
— Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) March 12, 2017
Their conversation comes weeks after Turnbull accused Labor of an "ideological" obsession with renewables, labelling their heavy focus on green energy as "mindless". He has been a significant critic of wind farms in South Australia, saying the state's renewable targets have come at the expense of "energy security".
Musk met with South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill on Friday after promising to fix the state's energy problems in 100 days with the Tesla storage system. He said the government is clearly committed to a smart and quick solution.
@mcannonbrookes Just spoke with @JayWeatherill, Premier of South Australia. Very impressed. Govt is clearly committed to a smart, quick solution.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 11, 2017
If he doesn't meet the wager, the state will receive the power system for free. South Australia relies on renewable energy for more than 40 percent of its power supply. In the past year, the state has been implicated in a number of electricity supply issues during recent heatwaves, and earlier during a large storm where the entire state plunged into blackout.
@mcannonbrookes Tesla will get the system installed and working 100 days from contract signature or it is free. That serious enough for you?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 10, 2017
Musk wagered with Mike Cannon-Brookes, a tech giant from Australian software company Atlassian.