Queensland’s way of slowing down solar rooftop energy
Political moves in Australia’s renewable energy landscape, PV Magazine 25 MARCH 2013 BY: JONATHAN GIFFORD, “……….In the state of Queensland, where over 1 GW of photovoltaics is expected to have been installed when its Feed In Tariff expires on July 10, a report into the electricity market has suggested new pricing structures for households installing a photovoltaic array……
The report recommended that a price of AUD0.0755/kWh be paid for electricity fed back into the grid from photovoltaic arrays, in south east Queensland, in 2013/14. It also found that compulsory minimum FITs were not required, and left the possibility of “gross FITs” open. Gross Feed In Tariffs have been vigorously opposed by the solar and renewable energy industry as they essentially prevent the self-consumption of electricity from a rooftop array.
In areas outside of the major population centers in the state, the Competition Authority report recommends the monopoly utility pay between AUD0.08 – AUD0.14/kWh for solar electricity from households.
The report has been criticized by supporters of renewable energy, because it does not take into account the advantages and savings that additional photovoltaic capacity adds, but rather assesses it only as a cost. These advantages include the reduction of wholesale electricity prices – the “merit order effect” – and a reduction of demand in peak times.
The report was also illustrative of some of the potential obstacles the solar industry may face in the future in Australia. The Queensland Department of Energy Supply and Water proposed to the Competition Authority that a limit be introduced to the amount of electricity that could quality for a FIT from each household and even the right of utilities to refuse solar connections http://www.pv-magazine.com/news/details/beitrag/political-moves-in-australias-renewable-energy-landscape_100010677/#ixzz2OxVmPPeE
The facts on Australia’s potential for rooftop solar energy
Rooftop Solar Could Supply 134% Of Australian Residential
Power Needs (includes excellent table illustrating Australia’s rooftop potential and costs) http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3660 27 March 2013: Australians feeling the pinch from high electricity prices have an economical alternative, and if every suitable rooftop in Australia was turned into a solar power station, the amount of energy generated would supply more than 134.8% of the country’s residential electricity needs.
Not only would the installation of solar on every roof be a boon for jobs, the cost of the electricity being generated would be reduced to a mere 7 cents per kWh. This potential new pricing point is in total contrast to what Australians are currently paying; up to 40 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh)1 in some parts of the country, which is predicted to continue climbing. Continue reading
Commercial solar panel leasing takes off in South Australia
Energy Matters’ Australian First For Commercial Solar Leasing http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3657 28 March 13 National solar solutions provider Energy Matter has announced a commercial solar leasing program offering South Australian businesses the opportunity to install a solar power system with zero up front costs.
The announcement was made at the recent formal unveiling of Ullrich Aluminium’s latest solar installation; a 30kW commercial system at their Pooraka, South Australia facility. Continue reading
Australian government funds small scale renewable energy storage
Small-scale energy storage project wins Australian Government backing PACE – Process and Control Engineering 22 March, 2013 Kevin Gomez Australian energy storage company Ecoulthas been awarded Australian Government funding through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
The funds will be used to conduct small/ mid-sized storage project development using Deka UltraBattery technology to deliver cost effective storage solutions for homes and businesses in Australia and around the world.
This pilot will develop a battery storage system prototype for three types of deficit charge/distributed energy applications:
- Off-grid renewable power solutions (Remote Area Power Supply);
- Distributed grid connected storage to support voltage and power fluctuations that arise where there is dense concentration of small roof-top solar installations in residential areas; and
- Hybrid generation (such as diesel plus renewables) to improve fuel efficiencies.
Ecoult CEO John Wood said the ARENA grant was a strong vote of confidence in the Australian-invented technology……
The pilot project will extend the collaboration between Ecoult, its US-based parent company East Penn Manufacturing and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
Research partner CSIRO, which originally invented the Deka UltraBattery technology, will also play an important role in this pilot project, developing intelligent algorithms that improve the integration of Deka Ultrabattery units with the Solar PV panels and increase the value derived from each kWh of energy storage…… http://www.pacetoday.com.au/news/small-scale-energy-storage-project-wins-australian
Wind energy backed by South Australian government
SA backs wind energy as investors hover REneweconomy, By Sophie Vorrath 20 March 2013 South Australia’s Premier Jay Weatherill has reaffirmed his government’s support for wind energy, saying that recent calls from within parliament for a moratorium on future wind farm development in Australia were putting investment in the industry at risk. “The government remains committed to providing ample opportunity for investment in wind energy in South Australia,” the premier told state parliament on Tuesday, adding that he would seek a vote in parliament on Wednesday backing the renewable energy sector. “Every megawatt hour of wind energy cuts about one tonne of greenhouse gas emissions. Apart from the environmental benefits, wind farms also bring in vital investment to our state,” Weatherill said, pointing to the around $3 billion in wind energy investment South Australia had already attracted, as well as 842 direct jobs…… http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/mixed-greens-sa-backs-wind-energy-as-investors-hover-59380
Australian government is keeping the Renewable Energy Target unchanged
Breaking: Canberra endorses status quo on renewables target REneweconomy By Giles Parkinson 21 March 2013 The Australian government has announced it endorses the Climate Change Authority’s recommendation that the fixed target of 41,000GWh be retained for the country’s Renewable Energy Target.
The decision was a crucial one for the renewables industry, which said that $18 billion of investment in wind and solar farms would be under threat if the government acceded to a push by some major generators and energy utilities to dilute the target. The generators, and utilities such as Origin Energy and EnergyAustralia, fear reduced earnings from their coal and gas fired generation if more renewables are deployed.
However, federal climate change minister Greg Combet said the CCA review had concluded there would be no benefit to consumers in reducing the target, and had argued that in the interests of investment certainty the target should be retained. Continue reading
Australia’s politicians cool on solar power, but public enthusiastic
Solar-loving Australians want more action on renewables: survey http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/solar-loving-australians-want-more-action-on-renewables-survey-30990 By Sophie Vorrath 19 March 2013 Where does Australia – with its abundant solar resource and expanses of and suitable for wind farms – rank in the global renewable energy production stakes? The answer: 31st. Surprising? Well, it was to the majority of respondents to a new national survey on renewable energy, two-thirds of whom had assumed their country would be ranked better than that.
The survey of 1,283 Australians – commissioned by WWF-Australia for Earth Hour, conducted by AMR Research and released today – has found that 87% of Australians want more action by all sectors, including government, to make Australia a top-10 global producer of renewable energy.
Rather less surprisingly, the survey also found that the average Australian is, by and large, more positive about renewable energy than the nation’s politicians – believing that renewable energy should account for 27 per cent of Australia’s total energy mix by 2020, rather than the current national target of 20 per cent renewables by 2020. Continue reading
Good riddance to Ted Baillieu, Victoria’s anti renewable energy Premier
The anti-wind campaign was viewed very much as “Ted’s show”, to the point where other government ministers would pass off their responsibility: It’s not my call, it’s Ted’s”
New Premier Dennis Napthine knows the wind industry and many Victorian wind jobs and has a track record of standing up for local manufacturing in the wind industry, and seeking to protect it from foreign imports.
“I think we can expect a more rational approach to wind industry, and more broadly renewable energy policy, whereas Ted Baillieu appeared to have a personal vendetta against renewable energy,” Wakeham said. Environment Victoria has a scorecard on Baillieu’s record on the environment and clean energy.
Why Baillieu’s exit could be good news for wind energy, REneweconomy By Giles Parkinson 7 March 2013 It is deeply 
ironic that on the very day that Ted Baillieu made his shock decision to resign as Premier of Victoria, the latest economic data showed the state had officially entered a recession: the man who had turned his back on the burgeoning clean energy industry had left the state with a shrinking economy.
It’s a moot point whether embracing the wind industry would have kept Victoria out of recession – although Friends of the Earth estimates Baillieu’s anti-wind decisions cost around $887 million in lost or stalled investment, and the 650 direct jobs and a further 1,400 indirect jobs lost in the process would have been useful for a state suffering the highest unemployment rate in the country.
But Baillieu’s opposition to wind is a parable for our times. Economies are changing, whether politicians like it or not, or believe in climate change or not. The clean energy transition is a global phenomenon that has been embraced by nearly every company not dependent on fossil fuels, and is recognised as such by the leaders of the major economies – US, China, Japan and Germany.
Ideological opposition and the bestowing of favours to some rich landowners may stop a few turbines, but it is nothing more than just pissing into the wind. Baillieu was so entrenched in the past he even favoured digging up half the state and exporting the brown coal reserves. As Deutsche Bank pointed out this week, economies like China will likely soon not want our black coal, let alone the more polluting brown mud found in Victoria. Continue reading
Hunter Region in New South Wales ready to change towards renewable energy
The Hunter is poised for energy innovation , Newcastle Herald, By Dr
Alan Broadfoot March 5, 2013 “….The Hunter generates over 60per
cent of the state’s electricity and is the largest regional economy in
Australia, with outputs last year totalling almost $37billion.
The region’s willingness for change is part of a growing push to
diversify and expand on our strengths.
Recent developments with hybrid power generation and renewable energy
show this transformative approach in the region. Continue reading
Wind farms benefiting rural areas
Wind farms beneficial: Clean Energy Council http://www.abc.net.au/rural/news/content/201303/s3702991.htm According to recent research conducted by the Clean Energy Council, wind farming has reportedly generated more than $4 billion in investment in Australia since its introduction.
Much of this investment has been in rural and regional towns. Continue reading
Liberal candidate Angus Taylor, and noisy anti wind minority, are out of step with majority support for wind farms
Angus Taylor, the Liberal candidate for the safe Liberal-held seat of Hume, which covers much of the district targeted by wind energy companies, including Mr Prell’s Crookwell property, has issued a policy paper challenging the renewable energy target, or RET
Wind farm opponents in minority: proponent, Canberra Times, March 4, 2013John Thistleton
Grazier Charlie Prell says a noisy minority opposed to wind farms in the Canberra region does not represent more than 70 per cent of people in his shire who support them.
He chaired a meeting of 100 farmers, lawyers and earth-moving contractors at Yass last week with the aim of forming a landholders’ network to foster wind and solar farms. Continue reading
New solar panel safety regulations
New Solar Panel Fire Rating Regulations in Australia http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3612 27 Feb 13 From July 16 this year, all makes and models of solar panels installed in Australia will need to have passed a new fire safety test. Continue reading
“Buyer Beware”: need for research in buying solar panels
From July 16 this year, all makes and models of solar panels installed in Australia will need to have passed a new fire safety test.
Energy Matters also offers a popular Solar Power Consumers Guide; a free 23 page electronic publication designed to help consumers select the right solar power system for their needs and avoid some of the potential pitfalls.
Consumer Affairs On Solar : ‘You Get What You Pay For’ http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3620 4 March 13, Shoddy solar products are in the headlines again after a major solar company went into voluntary administration last week and news other companies are in the spotlight for issues relating to quality.
According to AdelaideNow, two “significant” companies with a presence in South Australia have been called into compulsory conciliation meetings after a number of complaints relating to workmanship and materials.
“People get what they pay for … people need to do their research,” said Consumer Affairs Commissioner Paul White, who noted some cases of relatively low-quality inverters and panels being installed. Continue reading
Solar air conditioning is the answer for Australians affected by extreme hot weather
Grandparents Carking It In The Heat? Install Renewable Energy!, Clean Technica March 1, 2013 Ronald BrakelsWorld temperatures are rising, resulting in increasing mortality from heat stress. Or to put it another way, more people are dropping dead because it’s too damn hot. Unfortunately this is nothing new in Australia. Dropping dead from damn hotness has always been popular in these parts. Here in South Australia about 75 people currently die from it each year.
Other people building wind turbines or installing solar on their roofs can push down electricity prices for everyone and help prevent old people from dying when it’s too damn hot, but an excellent way to keep down electricity prices for the elderly is to put solar panels on the roofs of any old people whom you’d like to see continue to shuffle around on this mortal coil.
Rooftop solar is especially good for powering air conditioners as it produces the most electricity on hot, cloudless, summer days. It is particularly good for air conditioning when it faces west, or partially west, as then it can produce plenty of power all through the afternoon. It will produce less electricity when it’s cloudy, but it’s not so hot when it’s cloudy, so that’s not a real problem. And sure, it can still be hot after the sun goes down, but that’s not such a big deal if the house is already cool. No one is likely to die from it being too damn hot if they turn off their air conditioner at sunset.
For most Australians the feed-in tariff for new solar is now about 8 cents a kilowatt-hour. This means it will cost a person with a couple of kilowatts or more of rooftop solar perhaps 18 cents an hour to run a room air conditioner in a heat wave. Considering that ice-cream cones can cost $7.50 here, that’s a pretty good deal and only the most price sensitive of Australians would be too cheap to turn on the air conditioner at that cost.
As Australians reduce electricity use, Energy Australia gears up to fight renewable energy?
EnergyAustralia says one key focus of the coming year will be the managing the implications of reducing growth in energy demand,
Its other key focus, it says, will be on “policy advocacy”
Australian energy utilities buffeted by winds of change, REneweconomy By Giles Parkinson 26 February 2013 The winds of change in the energy industry has struck at the heart of the earnings of another of the country’s big three utilities, EnergyAustralia, which has reported a 42 per cent slump in profits as a result of the changing dynamics in the sector – lower wholesale prices, greater uptake of solar, and other decentralised generation, and lower consumption from energy efficiency.
It may seem ironic that in a year when consumer electricity prices jumped so sharply that Australia’s biggest energy utilities should suffer such sharp falls in profit. But the other big trend to weigh on EnergyAustralia’s earnings was a cost-conscious public, who are either reducing consumption or producing it themselves, through rooftop solar. Continue reading
1 This month
Read the Public Inquiry Report, the Commissioners’ report, Surrendering Australia: The AUKUS Deception is available to download for free at aukuspublicinquiry.com. Or just watch the replay of the National Press Club Luncheon.
4 November – Will AUKUS keep us safe – at what cost?
the Commissioners of the AUKUS Public Inquiry present their findings at the National Press Club of Australia in Canberra. iview.abc.net.au/show/national-press-club-address
Submissions to the federal government’s new draft framework close on the 13th November 2026.
Australians deserve the truth
about
AUKUS – https://aukuspublicinquiry.com/
PETITION – To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Government
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity
