Installations

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.

Traditional lands owners in Western Australia’s Pilbara region have signed an agreement with mining giant Rio Tinto to collaborate on large-scale renewable energy projects as the resources heavyweight powers up efforts to decarbonise its supply chain.

The Australian government has approved a third major renewables project in as many weeks, providing the green light for a 100 MW solar farm being developed in Queensland’s Western Downs region.

Solar and storage analyst Sunwiz is forecasting 2023 set a new record for small-scale solar in Australia. Despite installations this year lagging Australia’s biggest year to date, 2021, Sunwiz Managing Director, Warwick Johnston, tells pv magazine Australia that multiple signs point to a strong Q4.

Australian superannuation giant Aware Super has made a large-scale entry into the distributed renewable energy market, teaming with Melbourne-based Birdwood Energy in a venture specialising in smaller-scale solar and battery installations.

Singapore-based PV module manufacturer REC Group has launched in Australia a new series of rooftop solar panels with power ratings ranging from 450 W to 470 W and efficiencies up to 22.6%.

Rooftop solar generation continues to achieve record levels across the National Electricity Market but the Australian Energy Regulator has warned of a “pressing need for new investment” in large-scale renewable energy assets to keep pace with the energy transition.

Solax claims its new hybrid inverters can oversize PV systems by 200%, making them an ideal solution for commercial rooftop installations. There are five versions, featuring rated power outputs ranging from 15 kW to 30 kW.

Researchers at UNSW have modelled how shifts in Australia’s future weather patterns due to climate change will impact the nation’s solar resource, including its dependability. They found solar reliability may increase parts of Eastern Australia by 2099, but the outlook worsened in Western and Northern Australia.

RMIT University in Australia has developed new software that integrates product, regulation, technical, economic, and construction data. It helps architects and engineers to estimate the cost of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) during the conceptual design phase.