Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator (CER) said it has permanently suspended the registration of Emerging Energy Solutions Group Pty Ltd, meaning it can no longer create renewable energy certificates (RECs), which includes small-scale technology certificates (STCs).
“On 20 September 2024, we suspended Emerging Energy’s registration because we are satisfied it is no longer a fit and proper person,” the regulator said.
The decision comes after Worrells was appointed as liquidator to Emerging Energy on 24 July 2024. Since 1 August 2024, Emerging Energy’s REC registry account has been under control of the liquidators.
The regulator said Worrells has since issued advice to creditors which indicates Emerging Energy ceased to trade around July 2023.
The advice states: “Our preliminary investigations have revealed that the company’s business and assets may have been transferred to a related party,” with Worrells noting that it is undertaking investigations to identify whether the transfer of the business and assets may have constituted illegal phoenix activity.
Emerging Energy’s fate comes as another blow for the solar installers that used it, and the affiliated trading platform Greenbot, to lodge STCs for reimbursement from the federal government.
The CER said Greenbot is still trading after a failed attempt by the regulator to cease its operations. The regulator permanently suspended the registration of Greenbot on 11 June 2024 after being made aware of non-payment issues. On 3 July 2024 the Federal Court issued a temporary stay of the regulator’s decision, meaning Greenbot can operate as an agent in the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES) while the Court is reviewing the matter. The judicial review of the decision to suspend Greenbot is next before the Federal Court in Victoria on 11 October 2024.
The solar companies caught up in this incident claim the aggregators have traded millions of rebate certificates without passing payment on as they should.
The NSW Small Business Commissioner noted that in some cases, solar installers have completed multiple installation jobs but have not received payment for their work, impacting their cash flow and leaving them uncertain over whether they will be paid.
Solar installation firm The Energy Experts, a small business based in Kiama on the New South Wales south coast, is among those counting the cost.
The Energy Experts founder and sales manager Carolyn Lee said the company is one of more than 240 small businesses that have been caught up in the incident.
Lee said The Energy Experts is owed $40,000 by Greenbot but noted that some companies are owed up to $800,000, which is having major implications on their ongoing viability.
“Some companies have been cheated out of hundreds of thousands of dollars and they’ve had to lay off staff,” she said.
Lee has called for government intervention to help recover the owed monies, saying failing to do so will leave the way open for other aggregators to exploit the scheme and impact hundreds more solar installers.
“The government needs to step in,” she said. “So far, there’s been silence from federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen and the Clean Energy Regulator. Solar companies like ours feel like they’ve been left high and dry. Why is no one doing anything about this?”
The CER said it understands the stress non-payment causes small business but noted that the use of agents and any associated contractual matters, including those of STC price and payment are outside its legislative remit.
“Despite this, we have been helping those owed money by referrals to relevant agencies and providing as much information as possible on the status of small-scale technology certificates (STCs) for which payment is owed,” it said.
“We have shared information with state and territory consumer affairs bodies and the ACCC who are the regulators responsible for payment matters and are actively helping their inquiries.”
Tristan Edis, Director of analysis and advisory at consultancy firm Green Energy Markets, said it is important for solar installers to register their STCs with an agent who has a long and sound reputation for paying reliably and taking care of installers.
“This was a train wreck those with experience in the sector all saw coming from a long way away because it’s not the first time an aggregator has gone under and left a lot of installers in the lurch,” he said.
“Unfortunately, I suspect there isn’t much the government can do – it’s effectively now just like any other commercial liquidation where creditors are left with a hollowed-out carcass to pick over.”
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The Regulator has been more intent on micromanaging installers whilst turning a blind eye to the unscrupulous behaviour of one it’s biggest STC aggregators. Surely, it is not unreasonable to expect that the Regulator should enforce proper probity checks amongst all of the stakeholders that participate in their scheme. To have allowed this behaviour to transpire on their watch is a total abrogation of its responsibility to properly administer the Renewable Energy Target program, which now necessitates ministerial intervention.