Installations

Following strong global solar installation figures in 2023, Alexa Capital co-founder and partner Gerard Reid sees enormous potential for a renewables revolution.

The NSW state government’s Rebate Swap for Solar program has attracted 2,700 households to the scheme, which it says will take $600 a year off energy bills. The energy, environment and climate change ministry announced the scheme’s progress this week.

While investigating on the effects of wildfire smoke on rooftop PV installations, University of New South Wales (UNSW) researchers have found that solar arrays, due to their sensitivity to smoke, could serve as an early warning detection of wildfires by providing temporal and spatial information on the presence and approximate concentrations of smoke.

Researchers from the University of New South Wales have rejected suggestions that end-of-life solar panels will create a “waste mountain” in Australia, saying instead that they could serve as valuable material reservoirs for future production.

Australia’s green hydrogen project pipeline continues to progress with a string of announcements in recent days, including from Abel Energy which has appointed Worley to assist with the front end engineering design for its Bell Bay Powerfuels project in Tasmania.

Australia’s energy transition risks falling behind with a new report showing that the time required to plan, build and commission a large-scale solar farm is almost four years with the final stage of the process having blown out to six months or more.

Transgrid has released details of its preferred route for the northern portion of the VNI West interconnector project that will connect the New South Wales and Victoria electricity grids.

Commonwealth Bank-backed energy retailer and technology company Amber Electric has raised $29 million (USD 18.9 million) in capital that is earmarked to scale the business in Australia and to take its battery and electric vehicle automation software offshore.

Elgin Energy’s Glanmire solar farm and battery energy storage system planned for the New South Wales Central Tablelands region has been given the tick of approval by the state’s Independent Planning Commission – subject to “strict” conditions set in recognition of community concerns.

The economic benefits of integrating battery energy storage solutions in commercial settings have been highlighted by Relectrify which has released data showing that a recently commissioned 120 kW Revolve battery has reduced the customer’s import of energy from the grid by more than 94%.