Allume’s box costs $490 upfront for every apartment whose connection is housed within, so $4900 if 10 units in a block sign up to get solar power. The startup then charges $4.99 per apartment per month for access to its billing application programming interface, which includes a direct debit service.
Formation of First Nations Renewable Energy Alliance
http://www.sovereignunion.mobi/content/formation-first-nations-renewable-energy-alliance
http://nationalunitygovernment.org/pdf/2017/170303-SU-Mr-FN-Renewable%20Energy%20Alliance.pdf
“Members from First Nations across the continent successfully participated in the Coalition for Community Energy held in Melbourne Town Hall on 27 – 28 February 2017 …
This Alliance initiative is directed at ensuring remote and isolated communities are sufficiently catered for in respect to their energy needs …
“Grassroots energy enterprises, which numbered more than 80 people nation-wide formed an alliance to harness the power of communities to increase local energy security, bolster regional development partnerships, enhance community cohesion, reduce carbon emissions and
work towards a just energy transition. … ”
First Nations Renewable Energy Alliance
“Ghillar, Michael Anderson, Convenor of the Sovereign Union, last surviving member of the founding four of the Aboriginal Embassy and Head of State of the Euahlayi Peoples Republic said from Melbourne:
““Members from First Nations across the continent successfully participated in the Coalition for Community Energy held in Melbourne Town Hall on 27 – 28 February 2017 …
““This Alliance initiative is directed at ensuring remote and isolated communities are sufficiently catered for in respect to their energy needs. The current Australian corrupt system of energy delivery is controlled at the top level by government officials and politicians, who gain a lot of private funding for their political campaigns, in other words:
‘You scratch our backs and we’ll scratch yours.’ The level of corruption in Australian politics is so entrenched that the equity in engagement in respect of sustainable energy strategies is not possible under the current regime.
“We will direct our energies now and in the future to ensure that this corruption does not continue
and thereby give direction to secure certainly for those who seek to partner with us to provide for the development of sustainable communities.” … ”
The Text of the
First Nations Renewable Energy Alliance media release http://www.sovereignunion.mobi/content/formation-first-nations-renewable-energy-alliance#renewable Continue reading
Victoria’s opportunity for profitable leadership in community renewable energy
Renewable power to the people could reap profits in Victoria, The Age, Benjamin Preiss , 6 Mar 17 Electricity bill shock has become a distant problem for residents in Soren Hermansen’s hometown in Denmark. It is far more likely they will receive a cheque in the mail for their power on Samso Island. The island is carbon neutral and runs on renewable energy, with power and profits flowing back into the community.
Now Mr Hermansen travels the world championing community-owned power generation methods. Most recently he was in Victoria discussing with local communities how they can harness the power of the sun, wind and other renewable sources.
Last week Mr Hermansen spent a day in the Latrobe Valley meeting with residents who are concerned about how their communities will cope once the Hazelwood power station and mine close at the end of this month.
On Samso most of the wind turbines are mostly owned by locals. The island is powered by 11 onshore and 10 offshore wind power turbines, a solar plant and three straw-fired plants………..
Mr Hermansen believes Victoria is ripe with opportunities for community renewable energy generation, including the Latrobe Valley.
He suggested the Latrobe Valley could form part of a renewable energy distribution hub, capitalising on existing infrastructure and skills.
Latrobe City mayor Kellie O’Callaghan said Mr Hermansen’s visit was a “natural extension” of discussions already taking place in the community.
She agreed the Latrobe Valley already offered sound energy distribution infrastructure and expertise that could translate well into the community renewable energy projects.
Cr O’Callaghan said an “employee transition centre” set up to deal with the looming closure of Hazelwood had already included a “vision” for community-owned and operated energy generation.
“It is based in a firm belief community ownership means no longer being subject to the commercial whims of a large multinational company,” she said.
Mr Hermansen said the Hepburn Wind project in near Daylesford was proof that community energy was viable in Victoria. Hepburn Wind is a community owned wind farm with two turbines producing enough power for 2000 homes. http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/renewable-power-to-the-people-could-reap-profits-in-victoria-20170305-guqzt8.html
Queensland coal town “rebranding” as a solar town
Coal mining town Collinsville vies to become Australia’s solar capital, ABC By Ben Millington, 5 Mar 17, While many of Australia’s mining regions have been hit hard by the resources sector downturn, solar is providing rays of hope for the small town of Collinsville in north Queensland.
Three hours south of Townsville, Collinsville has a proud, long history of coal mining, boasting it had the last working pit ponies in Australia — up until 1990.
But this coal-fired town is poised for a rebrand. Solar companies are vying to take advantage of the region’s 300 days a year of perfect sunshine.
In August, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency announced it would provide $9.5 million to both Edify Energy’s 70MW Whitsunday Solar Farm and RATCH Australia Corporation’s 43MW Collinsville Solar Project.
Edify Energy director John Cole said, given the potential size and scale of projects in the region, Collinsville could be the solar capital of Australia.
“It’s a very good place for solar because of the radiation levels in north Queensland,” he said. “For example, our site in Collinsville will produce double the amount of power than a project in the UK, and about 5 to 10 per cent more than in New South Wales or Victoria.”
Plan to pump energy into Queensland grid Another advantage in Collinsville is a decommissioned power station that sits on its outskirts. Both projects plan to utilise the infrastructure to pump energy straight into the Queensland grid.
Edify Energy plans to start the construction of phase one this year.A nine-month build time is expected and 200 jobs will be offered to a town in desperate need of them.Local councillor Peter Ramage said the last four years had been devastating for the community…….http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-05/collinsville-coal-mining-town-moves-to-solar-capital-north-qld/8023384
“Smart Houses” to save Australia’s farms from climate change?
Farmers plant paddocks in smart houses to safeguard against climate change ABC
Economist Prof John Quiggan puts convincing case for public-owned Australian power grid
Public-owned Australian power grid could solve energy issues, paper argues https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/mar/03/public-owned-australian-power-grid-could-solve-energy-issues-paper-argues
Economist says national electricity market has been crippled by design flaws and a failure to take climate change into account Australia’s electricity woes could be solved through a unified and publicly owned national power grid, a discussion paper has said.
The paper authored by University of Queensland economist Prof John Quigginsays the creation of the national electricity market in the 1990s has failed to lower power prices and improve system reliability or environmental sustainability.
It argues the electricity grid, including physical transmission networks in each state and interconnectors linking them, should instead be publicly owned.
And it says that “renationalised” grid should be responsible for maintaining a secure power supply and moving towards a zero emissions industry.
Quiggin said minor changes to the current national electricity market would not be able to resolve the “energy instability” that was holding Australia back.
“The price increases of the past decades and the series of recent breakdowns reflect systemic design flaws, exacerbated by the failure to take appropriate account of the implications of climate change,” he said in a statement on Friday.
He said some believed a publicly owned power grid was “unthinkable” but recent political upheavals were proof unthinkable ideas should not be dismissed.
“It is the only coherent response to the failure of neoliberal electricity reform, just as the establishment of a publicly owned national broadband network was the only feasible response to the failure of telecommunications reform,” he said.
The director of Flinders University’s Australian industrial transformation institute, which has released the paper, said it laid down a challenge to governments of all persuasions to create a policy in the nation’s interest.
“It is clear that the current system is unreliable and untenable,” Prof John Spoehr said. “This is a discussion we have to have, as a catalyst for genuine, nation building reform.”
Clean Energy Finance Corporation to repeat solar success in battery storage
CEFC plans to repeat solar success in battery storage, REneweconomy, By Sophie Vorrath on 2 March 2017 Clean Energy Finance Corporation chair, Jillian Broadbent, says Australia’s energy system can safely accommodate significantly higher levels of renewable energy, as long as this was “planned and coordinated” with the rollout of smart technologies, including demand management and battery storage.
Speaking on the subject of Australia’s Energy Future, at a conference hosted by UTS, ISF and BNEF on Thursday, Broadbent outlined the kind of technological solutions the green bank would be backing to help achieve what the PM likes to call the “energy trifecta” of security, sustainability and affordability.
Notably, after a month in which the Malcolm Turnbull and his Coalition has relentlessly campaigned in favour of CEFC being used to finance clean coal, clean coal was not on her list.
Instead, Broadbent used the Sydney event to highlight the organisation’s plans to fast-track the roll-out of large-scale energy storage in Australia, in the same way its $250 million large-scale solar financing program boosted big solar development by bringing down costs.
“We’re close to finalising the transactions under our (large-scale solar) program, and we’re seeing falling technology costs,” she told the conference.
“Now we’re looking to have the same impact with large-scale storage, also working alongside ARENA to support the accelerated deployment of batteries and pumped hydro.
“Just this week we had a roomful of investors meet with 10 clean energy entrepreneurs seeking finance in our first Innovators Demo Day. One strong theme was the focus on the integration of sustainable energy production and storage at the household level, fortifying the grid’s stability and making energy more affordable.”
Further focuses for CEFC funds, Broadbent said, would include strengthened transmission infrastructure, behind-the-meter solutions, innovative business models to get more value from distributed energy resources, and frequency control services including hardware, data collection and control software……http://reneweconomy.com.au/cefc-plans-repeat-solar-success-battery-storage-78533/
Solar farms to benefit farmers in Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo areas
Solar farms: ‘Farming sun, instead of wheat’ http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/news/national/solar-farms-farming-sun-instead-of-wheat/news-story/339cad050ebf0e75d5eb373eeed8d160 KATH SULLIVAN, The Weekly Times March 2, 2017
THREE solar farms with the ability to generate enough electricity to power Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo will be built in northwest Victoria this year.
A $500 million investment by Australian-owned Overland Sun Farming and London-based Island Green Power will see construction at Wemen, Iraak and Yatpool.
Two hundred jobs are expected to be created in the construction phase, which will begin in the second quarter.
Each solar farm is expected to begin producing energy from January 1 next year.
Overland chief executive Brett Thomas said he had worked with landholders and local government for three years to develop the plans.
He said each farm would cover up to 300ha, with farmers paid for use of the land — typically wheat and grazing country — for up to 30 years. “It provides a strong off-farm income for farmers,” Mr Thomas said, likening the project to primary production.“We’re farming sun, instead of wheat,” he said.
Mr Thomas described the technology as “relatively simple, the same as roof tops” however solar panels would use mechanical trackers to move east to west and follow the sun.
Mildura Development Corporation chair Jenny Grigg described the project as “massive” for the region.“It’s a great regional development opportunity,” Ms Grigg said.She said she expected that up to $30 million would be spent in the local economy during the construction phase of the farms.
National Australia Bank now investing in renewable energy in Europe, US and UK
NAB taps offshore green bond market for 1.1GW of solar, wind, REneweconomy, By Sophie Vorrath on 2 March 2017 National Australia Bank has broadened its renewable energy investment reach to the European, US and UK markets, with the issuance this week of a €500 million ($A690 million) green bond, targeting what the bank describes as “strong investor demand” for solar and wind energy projects.
The bond, issued on Thursday, will refinance renewable energy and low carbon transport projects and assets in the UK, Europe, Australia and the Americas, including wind and solar energy assets with an expected installed capacity of more than 1GW.
It is the third bond of its kind to be issued by NAB, but marks the first issuance of an offshore green bond by an Australian bank, and the biggest ever green bond from an Australian issuer.
And it takes the bank’s total funds committed to the financing of renewable energy generators, globally, to more than $1 billion since October 2016, the bank says.
In 2014, NAB became the first Australian lender to jump into the booming green bond market, with the issue of a certified $150 million climate bond targeting a portfolio of 17 wind and solar projects.
As we reported here at the time, the largely renewable-focused exercise was a huge success, with strong investor demand doubling the size of the bond to $300 million within hours.
NAB it says its second green bond was also met with strong investor demand, and the order book well oversubscribed……http://reneweconomy.com.au/nab-taps-offshore-green-bond-market-for-1-1gw-of-solar-wind-48807/
Comments on the FINAL REPORT – SOUTH AUSTRALIAN SEPARATION EVENT- Australian Energy Market operator (AEMO)
After all the negative comments from State and Federal politicians and the media about renewable energy not providing synchronous generation I find it ironic that this “event” was 99% related to synchronous thermal (coal and gas) electricity generators. Ill-informed comment from politicians and journalists exposes the subjective ideological underpinning of these commentators.
Dennis Matthews 1 Mar 17, INTRODUCTION The AEMO report (, 1 DECEMBER 2016) is shockingly (!) written.
It’s full of jargon and acronyms with no easy way of finding what the acronyms mean. We could be forgiven for thinking that AEMO publications are intended to be read only by industry experts rather than concerned consumers.
Its charts are frequently unreadable, with minute characters used to label the axes, the axes overcrowded with labels, and five figure labels such as 200.00 where 200 would have sufficed.
The continual use of the words “incident” and “event” are reminiscent of the nuclear industry’s description of its many serious accidents and failures.
AEMO has uncovered gross inadequate performance by the electricity industry from electricity transmission to fossil fuel electricity generation to systems needed to maintain the integrity of the overall generation-distribution-transmission system. At no stage is there even a hint that severe penalties should be incurred by those responsible. I suspect, even if there were penalties that these would be recovered through increased prices. Competition is almost totally lacking in the industry.
At no stage was the cause of the “separation event” (failure of the Heywood interconnector from Victoria to SA) the fault of wind or solar electricity generators, quite the opposite. Wind powered electricity generators contributed 6% to power supply and the interconnector failure led to the shutdown of 2 wind farms in Victoria.
The following discussion uses the same section notation as the AEMO report.
1. OVERVIEW Continue reading
Victorian government more than doubles solar-feed-in tariff
Victoria solar feed-in tariff more than doubles to 11.3c/kWh, REneweconomy,By Giles Parkinson on 28 February 2017 More than 130,000 solar households in Victoria will benefit from a steep increase in their solar feed-in tariff in 2017/18, and will receive a minimum 11.3c/kWh for their exports back to the grid, up from 5c/kWh currently.
The hefty increase announced by the Essential Services Commission on Tuesday is the result of a big rise in wholesale prices, and the Victoria Labor government’s instruction to include an implicit carbon price, network benefits and environmental benefits into the tariff. Continue reading
Study finds that 100 per cent ‘off the shelf’ renewable energy network is affordable
100 per cent renewable energy network affordable, secure and ‘off the shelf’: study, ABC News, AM By Caroline Winter, 27 Feb 17, Australia can build an affordable and secure electricity network with 100 per cent renewable energy, using existing technologies, according to research by the Australian National University (ANU).
So how would it work?
The study details plans for a zero-emissions grid which would rely on wind and solar technology, supported by pumped hydro storage.
It could be set up with inexpensive, currently available, “off the shelf” products and eliminate the need for coal and gas-fired power……
Professor Andrew Blakers from the ANU said wind and solar can be that replacement, with the support of off-river pumped hydro, where reservoirs at different altitudes can be used to store and generate power……..http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-27/100-per-cent-renewable-network-possible/8306482
Plan for solar panels accessible to flat dwellers
Startup Allume lets solar panels be ‘shared’ by strata dwellers, AFR by Michael Bailey, 1 Mar 17 Providing solar power to apartments is an expensive and onerous problem which a Melbourne startup claims to have cracked.
Allume, a 2016 graduate of the Melbourne Accelerator Program, is patenting a 50 centimetre by 25 centimetre box its founders say. will allow solar power to be distributed and billed to individual apartments, without the expense of changing the building’s existing metering infrastructure.
Apartment residents wanting solar power have to date had two options, according to Allume co-founder Cameron Knox.
They could band together to install an ’embedded network’, where one meter channels electricity to the whole apartment block. However this requires everybody in the block to agree to sign up, and involves a “regulatory overhead” that renders most installations unviable………
Individual apartment owners could also connect to their own panels but even if their neighbours agreed to grant them the roof space, Mr Knox said the upfront cost of wiring a single flat would exceed $3000 and likely lead to inefficient use of the panel, with a much longer ‘payback period’ than that enjoyed by owners of standalone houses.
Under Allume’s system, not every apartment owner has to sign up and an installation is usually viable with as little as six customers, Mr Knox said.
In return residents get access to solar power for an average 16 cents per kilowatt hour, compared with the average retail power cost of 24 cents/kWh. The purchaser – whether it be the body corporate, or an external financier – is charged only the wholesale cost of the power and makes enough margin for the ‘payback period’ on Allume’s deal to range between six to eight years.
“Solar power purchase agreements typically last for 25 years, so that’s a lot of years of free revenue stream,” said Mr Knox.
Allume worked with the Australian Energy Regulator to get a ‘retail exemption licence’ allowing it to sell energy to landlords, who can then on-sell to tenants…… http://www.afr.com/leadership/entrepreneur/startup-allume-lets-solar-panels-be-shared-by-strata-dwellers-20170228-gun689#ixzz4a2ajEQB2
Global battery storage industry to fight Australia home bans
REneweconomy By Giles Parkinson & Sophie Vorrath on 24 February 2017 The world’s biggest battery manufacturing brands and clean energy lobby groups have signalled they will fight proposed new guidelines and recommendations that could effectively ban battery storage units from inside homes and garages, saying the restrictions are over the top and don’t conform to international standards.
Standards Australia is believed to be preparing the release of new standards that would effectively force most battery storage units to be put in a free-standing and fireproof enclosure, possibly adding thousands of dollars to the cost of installation and making it uneconomic.
As a precursor to that move, Queensland workplace regulators unveiled new recommendations last week that suggested no battery storage units be installed inside homes and garage or adjoining sheds, and instead be put in separate enclosures.
The restriction appears to apply to all battery storage units, and not just lithium chemistries
Some in the industry have branded the suggestions as ridiculous…….http://reneweconomy.com.au/global-battery-storage-industry-fight-australia-home-bans-52711/
World-first digital energy marketplace for rooftop solar launched by Australian consortium
The consortium is launching two pilot projects in the ACT and on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, each involving around 5,000 households. The projects are also being overseen by a reference group that includes the Australian Energy Market Operator, the Australian Energy Market Commission and Energy Consumers Australia.
Australian consortium launches world-first digital energy marketplace for rooftop solar https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2017/feb/23/australian-consortium-launches-world-first-digital-energy-marketplace-for-rooftop-solar
Pilot program will allow homeowners to tap into a network of ‘virtual’ power stations made up of smart grids of rooftop solar and batteries, Guardian, Bianca Nogrady, 24 Feb 17, With that challenge in mind, in 2016, GreenSync got together with electricity network operators United Energy and ActewAGL, energy tech startup Reposit Power, and energy retailer Mojo under the auspices of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s A-Lab; an initiative that the Arena chief executive, Ivor Frischknecht, describes as an “innovation sandbox”. Arena contributed $450,000 towards the total project cost of $930,000.
What they came up with has yet to be done anywhere in the world: a network of “virtual” power stations made up smart grids of rooftop solar panels and batteries. Continue reading
South Australia’s Spencer Gulf ideal for pumped hydro energy storage –
“If a project of this scale, a pumped hydro project of this scale, had been available recently in South Australia, there wouldn’t have needed to been the load shedding that occurred there,” Mr Turnbull said.
Pumped hydro power station ideal for SA Spencer Gulf site, EnergyAustralia says http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-22/pumped-hydro-power-in-spencer-gulf-energy-australia/8292596 PM By Khama Reid A desert site at the top of Spencer Gulf in South Australia is perfect for a pumped hydro venture, EnergyAustralia chief executive Catherine Tanna has said.
What is pumped hydro?
- Power is generated by releasing sea water from a top dam, through a turbine, into a lower dam
- During times of plentiful energy on the network, seawater is pumped up into the top dam, like charging a battery
- The top dam would hold about eight hours of power which can be switch on at short notice
Backed by federal funding, the company and its partners will investigate the proposal further, with hopes it could be operational by the end of the decade.
“What’s required is to find a site, obviously being pumped hydro, that has water, but we also look for a site that has the right geography and topography … elevation, but also a site that has proximity to transmission,” Ms Tanna said.
Using $450,000 received from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, the company will look at whether it is feasible to put a 100 to 200-megawatt power station close to Port Augusta and Whyalla. Continue reading
1 This month
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
