Finance

The Australia Institute (TAI) has criticised the Government’s $2 billion bushfire recovery fund, questioning why the taxpayer should foot the bill when a levy on fossil fuel producers would be a better way of funding the recovery.

A microgrid installed on an apartment block in Melbourne will provide clean and affordable electricity to 52 low-income households. It is the first site of Ovida’s Community Energy Hubs project, which will deliver shared solar PV and batteries to more multi-tenanted buildings in the city.

Sydney-based developer Genex Power Limited (Genex) has fought its way back from several unlucky blows to achieve financial close for the 50MW Jemalong Solar Project and the refinancing of the 50 MW Kidston Solar One Project.

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.

Fossil fuel giant Royal Dutch Shell has snapped up a 49% stake in one of the biggest Australian utility-scale solar developers furthering its expansion into the market.

Described as “historic”, the draft outlines the future climate protection course of the European Union. Overall, the EU should become climate neutral by 2050, and trigger €1 trillion in investment. €1 billion is expected to be made available for the transition. This is to be formalized in a climate law in the coming months. Although solar was noticeably absent in the draft, plans have been detailed by SolarPower Europe as to how it could be included.

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.

Victoria’s Essential Services Commission has proposed electricity retailers should offer PV owners the option to choose between a single rate feed-in tariff and a time-varying feed-in tariff, and set lower minimum rates for both.

The national science agency, CSIRO, has mapped the critical research steps Australia must take to realise a potential 7600 jobs and $11 billion a year by 2050 from the burgeoning hydrogen industry.

A University of New South Wales (UNSW) community survey has found majority support for the proposed Australian Carbon Dividend Plan, a plan to tax the biggest carbon emitters and redistribute to the Australian taxpayers.