Employment

Australia’s largest electricity transmission project has hit a snag with a major union alleging transmission line workers delivering the New South Wales stretch of the $2 billion-plus (USD 1.32 billion) Project EnergyConnect electricity interconnector have been working in unsafe and non-compliant conditions.

The Western Australian government has just allocated $220 million to support Griffin coal mine, so operations may continue until June 2026. The funding was announced by Premier Roger Cook and the Minister for Energy, Mines and Petroleum Bill Johnston, who earlier announced he is stepping down from cabinet last week.

Former Sun Cable chief executive David Griffin has been appointed to the top job at Australian modular PV array manufacturer 5B where he will oversee the continued rollout of its solar energy solution.

Sun Cable, which plans to build a 20 GW solar farm in the Northern Territory and export solar-generated electricity to Singapore via a 4,300-kilometre high-voltage undersea cable system, has announced plans to manufacture the power cables itself at a “multi-billion facility” in Tasmania.

Australia needs 200,000 more people in clean economy jobs by 2030, or risks missing its renewable energy targets according to a new campaign backed by Australian tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes.

Queensland’s transition from a reliance on coal-fired power to renewables has taken a step forward with the state government tabling a new bill in parliament that locks in its commitments to public ownership in the energy system and renewable energy targets.

As the nation looks to foster the perfect conditions for a successful renewable transition, overwhelming attention is being paid to the number of new energy developments and the viability of transmission infrastructure to deliver it to Australian homes. Far less publicised are the practicalities of how the infrastructure will be developed and by whom.

The traditional owners of Yindjibarndi lands in Western Australia have struck a deal with Philippines-based energy giant ACEN Corporation to develop more than 3 GW of wind, solar and battery storage in the state’s Pilbara region.

A time-motion study by United States Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory shows that retrofitting installations of roof-integrated PV takes 7% less labour time than standard solar installations. For new construction, the installation time drops by 44%.

A Victorian solar installer that ignored a seven-metre fall risk on a job site in Geelong has been convicted and ordered to pay almost $40,000 after pleading guilty to three charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.