Highlights

With no new measures to the reduce emissions in the electricity sector and no renewable energy target beyond 2020, federal government leaves little room for hope for policy driven renewables expansion. At a state level, ambitious renewable energy targets could help fill the policy void to a certain extent, but some states are falling short of their self-imposed targets for either renewable energy or emissions reductions.

Nine issues papers have been developed following national and international consultation as Australia seeks to tap the global transition to lower emissions sources of energy.

The first-in best-dressed Solar Homes program kicked off on Monday, with a half of solar rebates available in July snapped in the first day. The revamped scheme will be accompanied with a more stringent auditing program and other measures to optimize the rollout following difficulties that have plagued round one.

Year two of Australia’s utility-scale solar boom and the first wave of defects liability periods is rolling to an end, providing new opportunities for long-term maintenance and optimisation of plant performance. This week the Smart Energy Council and SolarPlaza raised a conference in the name of Solar Asset Management, to help address risks and responsibilities for these and future solar farming.

AGL has completed a 2.12 MW ground-mounted solar PV system at Santos’ Port Bonython hydrocarbon processing plant in Whyalla, South Australia. The installation represents a step in the right direction for Santos’ emissions reduction program.

Two Western Australian mines will be powered by renewable energy hybrid microgrids echoing a global shift away from fossil fuels in the mining sector.

The Victorian Government has published its targets and caps for the 2019/20 round of the Solar Homes program. 40,0000 privately owned homes are set to receive government grants under the program, with an additional 2,000 systems on rental properties. 1,000 grants for retrofitted residential storage are also set to be subsidised in the latest round, in targeted areas. 

Some commercial and industrial (C&I) rooftops remain shut off to solar installers. Weight constraints and roofs that cannot be penetrated by mourning structures can make a building unsuitable for PV. However, the major constraint for many enterprise owners or tenants is that they may no be able to benefit from the full 25-30 year lifetime of the system. The good news: it’s a challenge that can be overcome, says James Larratt, the CEO at Australian PV startup Solpod.

The G20 meeting of environment and energy ministers in Karuizawa, Japan on the weekend came out largely in favour of adopting lower-emissions energy technologies: that means cleaner coal as well as driving development of solar- and wind-powered green hydrogen.

With the trading suspension lifted, the ASX-listed contracting company says its fear of cost blowouts on a 34 MW Victorian project has been allayed by the ongoing good faith negotiations with client Enel Green Power.