Commercial & Industrial PV

The Nova Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Operation mine in the Fraser Range of Western Australia is now operating with fewer costs and emissions thanks to Zenith Energy’s hybrid solar PV-diesel power plant. The plant provides a litany of firsts, including being the first hybrid solar PV-diesel project completed without a single government subsidy.

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) has come together with private sector infrastructure fund manager Infradebt to invest in smaller utility-scale renewable energy projects for community and commercial energy users. The move aims to close an investment gap for projects of 25 MW or less.

The new StorEnergy centre – supported with a $4.4 million Federal Government grant – will produce battery materials on a commercial scale and seek to increase knowledge and develop innovative solutions for Australia’s energy needs.

To fill the gap left by retiring coal-fired plants, the Australian Energy Market Operator forecasts that Australia should invest in a further 30-47 GW of new large-scale wind and solar projects by 2040. At the end of the outlook period, AEMO projects that distributed energy resources could provide up to 13% to 22% of total underlying annual NEM energy consumption.

Japan’s second-largest utility KEPCO has extended a demonstration project with Australia’s pioneer in P2P energy trading Power Ledger to create and track renewable energy certificates and trade PV-generated electricity.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) is set to aid small businesses become more sustainable with the announcement of expanded funding for the Sustainable Australia Fund (SAF). The funding will help to provide more access to renewable energies and other low-cost energy-efficient upgrades for local businesses.

Swinburne PhD candidate Suneeti Purohit’s remarkable double innovation utilises solar power to decarbonise the steel industry and save iron ore miners money.

Mirvac has become the first Australian property company to join RE100, reaffirming its commitment to transition to 100% renewable energy by 2030. Growing by a third with 40% of that growth coming from Asia and the South Pacific, the global initiative which brings together companies committed to sourcing all of their energy from renewables is experiencing its biggest year yet.

Construction is underway on the first urban solar farm to harness the power of clean energy using Epho’s Bright Thinkers Power Station. The technology overcomes various constraints for solar in the city allowing installations to operate both behind and in front of the meter.

All of the winemaker’s Australian sites are now using renewable electricity thanks to the completion of the nation’s largest combined winery solar installation and a 10-year power purchase agreement to source renewable electricity.