The contribution of solar PV to Australia’s electricity generation mix hit record new highs in 2018, in new figures published today by Green Energy Markets. Last year rooftop PV generation from new arrays was 86% higher than in the previous three years and utility scale solar increased 300% – passing the 1,000 GWh milestone for the first time.

A property development in South Australia will deliver solar and storage off-the-plan for home buyers. Developer DLH Projects and Natural Solar are partnering on the property development, and will utilize Hanwha Q Cells DUO-G5 modules and sonnen batteries, making it the first multi-site residential development to benefit from the South Australia Home Battery Scheme.

The Australian Labor Party has released a National Hydrogen Plan, which involves directing $1 billion in CEFC funding towards clean hydrogen projects, $100 million in ARENA grants for hydrogen technology refuelling infrastructure, and $40 million from the CEFC’s Innovation Fund to help commercialise new hydrogen technologies and businesses. Looking towards clean energy exports, the plan will provide $3 million in funding to Queensland coal port in Gladstone with the aim of creating a hydrogen hub.

Glass-glass modules are built to survive the toughest conditions and can deliver module lifetimes far exceeding the 20-30 years expected of glass-foil. The module concept is ideally positioned to catch the building bifacial wave, but only if quality concerns are addressed, warn some experts in the field.

Seeing the Australian residential battery storage market as poised to take off, Senec’s Jaron Schächter, one of three Managing Directors of Senec Germany says that it looks to build “strong partnerships” as it continues to expand into market.

The Lyon Group is partnering with Japanese energy giant JERA and battery technology provider Fluence to deliver the 55 MW Cape York Battery Power Plant. The $150 million solar+storage project secured its generator performance standard, clearing the way for construction to begin in early 2019.

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) is upping its equity investment in large scale renewables by almost 40%. The CEFC announced today a $100 million investment in the Infrastructure Capital Group’s (ICG) Australian Renewables Income Fund (ARIF).

A new three-phase residential inverter and battery solution will be introduced to the Australian market in the new year. Fronius and BYD underlined their collaborative agreement when representatives of the two companies met “recently” in Austria. Fronius believes the solution is the first of its kind to provide “this type of emergency power supply.”

The New South Wales government has released new guidelines for PV power plant developers in the state. The guidelines encourage “early consultation, continual consultation and suitable site selection.”

The Clean Energy Council has tallied the numbers underlying Australia’s large scale renewables boom. And big PV is shattering all records, with almost $11.5 billion in projects currently being constructed.