The Clean Energy Regulator (CER) has released figures showing that the number of small-scale renewable energy installs has passed the 3 million milestone, with rooftop solar accounting for 63% of the total.

Australia’s first large-scale project to use pumped hydro to store solar generated power, the Kidston facility in north Queensland, has landed more than half a billion dollars in concessional finance from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility.

Perth-based blockchain startup Power Ledger has announced its first carbon credit project as part of its partnership with Chicago-based startup Clean Energy Blockchain Network and in collaboration with California’s municipal utility Silicon Valley Power. The company’s platform will manage credits generated by the use of solar energy in electric vehicle charging.

The national science agency has issued a call for “citizen scientists“ to help it understand the way households consume, generate and interact with energy. The data will be collected by means of the new CSIRO Energise app.

On the back of the massive supply deal, the Spanish manufacturer has announced it has crossed the 1 GW threshold for photovoltaic inverter shipments to Australia.

On the back of a 20 year power-purchase agreement with Total Eren, the global confectionary giant has taken 100% renewable energy pledge for its six Australian factories.

A 45 MW portion of the Bungala solar farm has begun feeding electricity into the grid. The entire first phase of the project – a 137.7 MW PV plant – is expected to be completed in a few months.

With an unprecedented rollout of rooftop solar reaching 1.1 GW and around 700 MW of large-scale renewable energy projects completed and connected to the grid, last year was an important turning point for Australia’s clean energy industry, shows the Clean Energy Council in its latest report. However, seven times bigger capacity of utility-scale projects with financial support or under construction at the year’s end is poised to eclipse 2017.

The 174 MW solar farm coupled with a 100 MWh energy storage facility near Wellington has received a green light from the New South Wales Department of Planning and Environment. The project proposal came from First Solar.

Australia’s energy utility Snowy Hydro has invited potential energy suppliers to submit their proposals with the aim to contract up to 400 MW of wind and 400 MW of solar generation.