There's only one thing that Kumaran Nathan is not allowed to do - talk about electrical engineering at the family's New Lambton Heights dinner table.

"My dad was an electrical engineer and my brother's in mechatronics, so Mum doesn't let us talk about it at dinner," the 23-year-old student joked.

On April 17, Mr Nathan will travel to Melbourne where Prime Minister Tony Abbott will formally present him with the 2014 Origin Foundation General Sir John Monash scholarship.

It's no ordinary scholarship.

The Origin Foundation chips in $150,000 to the winner of the Monash Foundation prize and allows the winner to continue studies at some of the world's most elite universities.

Mr Nathan, a former Merewether High student, finished his bachelor of engineering degree at Newcastle University in 2012 with first class honours. He was also awarded the University Medal.

His studies have turned towards a PhD in how renewable energy can be better re-integrated into existing power grids from multiple sources, and stored.

The issue is expected to become more of a problem in the next decade as more homes want to feed the grid from sources such as rooftop solar panels. He chose Cambridge over Oxford University because it is home to some of the world's best researchers in the field.

Peter Binks, the chief executive of General Sir John Monash Foundation, said Mr Nathan's "extraordinary academic record" was only part of his appeal to the scholarship's judging panels.

"What really stood out, he has a very clear vision for what needs to be done about energy distribution," Mr Binks said.

"He's a very smart young man, and a very very good leader."