While going off-grid may be among the goals of many a thrifty homeowner, a research project Down Under looks to bring a wider-scale version of locally-produced power to several universities across Australia.

Unlike traditional models of power generation, where a single massive plant sends out energy over an electrical grid, on-site energy generation, also known as distributed generation, employs several different smaller power sources to supply the same amount of energy to the same area.

Distributing the load like this allows for technologies without the outright ability to pump out kilowatts as carbon heavy sources like coal, or potentially controversial sources, like nuclear fission, to meet the energy needs of a small area.  The network of individual plants also allows for better use of energy from intermittent sources, such as solar and wind, and provides an added safeguard against power failures.

The trade-off is generally in price, as smaller energy operations seldom manage to reach the low price-per-kilowatt offered by massive power installations. But by passing the burden of power creation from a central utility off to a consumer, it creates a strong incentive for that consumer to become more careful in his or her energy use.