The Clean Energy Regulator has recommended major reforms for Australia’s rooftop solar PV industry, including that it be solely responsible for the enforcement of regulations in relation to accredited installers, retailers and component manufacturers.

Australian renewable energy developer ACE Power has called on the federal government to set clear policy and emissions targets as it looks to make an impact on the nation’s transition to renewables with an estimated 1.3 GW portfolio of large-scale solar PV, wind and battery energy storage projects in development.

Queensland’s ambition to become a leading producer and exporter of green hydrogen has received a boost with state government-owned electricity generator Stanwell teaming with a consortium of Australian and Japanese energy companies to commence a feasibility study for a proposed large-scale production and export project in Gladstone.

Spanish-Japanese renewable energy company Univergy Solar and Australian partner New Energy Development have revealed a 75 MW/150 MWh battery energy storage system is likely to be coupled with the proposed 100 MW Wallaroo Solar Farm being developed near the border between New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory.

Australian start-up SunDrive has created the most effective commercial-sized silicon solar cell in the world, achieving an efficiency figure of 25.54% in testing carried out by the Institute for Solar Energy Research in Germany.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency has responded to the federal government’s decision to expand its mandate to include ‘low-emission technologies’, unveiling a new investment plan that provides for the financing of a broader range of technologies including some using fossil fuels.

The Queensland government will pour more than $580 million into increasing electricity network capacity and replacing ageing assets as part of a $52.2 billion infrastructure program designed to transform the state into a renewables, advanced hydrogen and manufacturing superpower.

A global registry that uses satellite images to map and quantify the rollout of solar PV across rooftops in some of the world’s most iconic cities has ranked Melbourne among the top five for solar roof utilisation.

The development of a “world-first” marketplace designed to maximise the value of distributed energy resources, including rooftop solar PV, batteries and electric vehicles is on track with the Australian Energy Market Operator confirming it expects to start trialling the platform in early 2022.

The suitability of vanadium redox flow battery technology for Australian residential and commercial applications is set to be tested with Perth-based energy storage company VSUN Energy planning to deploy three 5 kW/30 kWh flow batteries.