Absorbent glass mat battery for residential storage
Silicon Valley-based start-up Gridtential has secured US$12 million (AU$15.5m) in funds to develop what it calls the world’s first factory-ready, single-block, 24V, deep-cycle lead battery. The product is claimed to be ideal for personal mobility vehicles and renewable energy storage in homes and offices.
NSW feed-in-tariffs to drop in line with falling wholesale electricity prices
Recommendations by the NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal will see payback times for solar systems extended, but also favour battery uptake.
Tesla touts the market strength of its Powerwall energy storage product
In an earnings call, the company said that storage deployments grew 71% YoY and solar installations were its strongest in 2.5 years.
Error in ‘solar tax’ calculations may leave homes with no export profits, analysis finds
The impacts of Australia’s proposed “solar tax” may have been greatly underestimated, according to a report from the Victoria Energy Policy Centre. The institute says proposed rule change is “likely to leave solar homes with little or no income from rooftop solar exports” as feed-in tariffs drop.
South Australia sets record as rooftop solar sees electricity prices consistently plunge below zero
Rooftop solar has caused South Australia’s average daytime prices fell below zero consistently for the first time in the NEM’s history, the Australian Energy Market Operator said in its quarterly report released today.
Victorian government launches VPP pilot program
Victoria’s Andrews Government has launched a battery aggregation pilot program which seeks to build an “approved aggregation provider list” alongside the Solar Homes battery rebate. The Victorian Government sees the future of virtual power plants and microgrids and this is an opportunity for both consumers and providers to benefit.
Solar discrimination sees electricity retailer fined $300,000
Powershop has been fined $300,000 after Victoria’s Essential Services Commission found the energy retailer was offering solar customers more expensive electricity plans than non-solar customers.
Global database for PV system performance
The database brings together photovoltaic performance data and meteorological values from PV systems located in all climate zones. It is being built by an international consortium including the Fraunhofer Centre for Silicon Photovoltaics CSP, and the Anhalt University of Applied Sciences.
Spotlight on Australian solar – what’s working, why, and where there’s room to grow
Company Solahart, which originated in Perth, has delivered a heartening snapshot of solar Australia. It found the country deploys renewable energy 10 times faster per capita than the global average, four times faster per capita than in Europe, China, Japan or the U.S.A. Solahart examined what motivates different demographics of Australians to install solar and which parts of the country are most suited to solar.
NSW installer receives unexpected response from customers after switching exclusively to microinverters
Solar installer Jake Warner has received surprising feedback from his customers after he chose to transition his company, Penrith Solar, exclusively to microinverters two months ago. “What I found is actually the opposite to what I expected,” Warner told pv magazine Australia.
