Barnaby Joyce has dismissed South Australia's plan for the world's biggest lithium ion battery as a good idea but too small to make much difference.
Billionaire investor Elon Musk's company Tesla will build the 100 megawatt battery - paired with a new wind farm from French company Neoen - within 100 days, or deliver it for free after signing a deal with the SA government.
But the acting prime minister said people shouldn't think this is going to be the power solution for the state.
"It's a good idea but the capacity is not there," Mr Joyce told ABC TV on Sunday.
"You know, a grain of sugar is an advantage to a teaspoon, but it doesn't make a hell of a lot of difference."
He cautioned against thinking "coal-fired power is an evil word" and lauded his government's plan to build larger storage capacity through expanding the Snowy Hydro scheme.
Joyce on energy prices
Mr Joyce wants a solution to bringing down energy prices and not endless political point scoring that doesn't fix anything.
Former Liberal leader Tony Abbott, in one of his many deliberations in recent weeks, again wants to make energy policy the point of difference between the coalition and Labor, but the acting prime minister government said that doesn't solve the problem.
"We have got to a point now with this issue, the lady who is going to bed early to stay warm is not really interested in your political point scoring, she wants a solution and we have a moral responsibility to deliver it for her," Mr Joyce told Sky News.
