Finance

Norwegian consultancy Rystad Energy has placed Australian and Vietnamese solar markets side by side and found the Southeast Asian country has left Australia behind in terms of commissioned utility-scale PV capacity. A staggering 4,460 MW of connected PV capacity in Vietnam at the end of June came as a surprise to many.

The July quota for solar PV rebates under Victoria’s Solar Homes program has been filled within days. The next release will be available in August.

With the comeback of the Victorian government’s first-in best-dressed Solar Homes program, consumers are urged to do their due diligence as they rush to apply for popular rebates. If incorrectly installed, batteries are a serious safety risk, industry body Future Energy Skills underlines.

A housing development in Perth’s northern suburb Girrawheen is the first of its kind for Western Australia to provide a solar system with every home. Launched last year by provider Infinite Energy, the solar lease has proved to be a winner for homebuyers, resulting in a 40% saving on daytime power costs.

The first-in best-dressed Solar Homes program kicked off on Monday, with a half of solar rebates available in July snapped in the first day. The revamped scheme will be accompanied with a more stringent auditing program and other measures to optimize the rollout following difficulties that have plagued round one.

As part of its plans to transition to 50% renewable energy by 2030, the Northern Territory government is moving forward with its solar schools program with tenders awarded for installation at five schools.

Taiwanese analyst Energytrend saw prices for high power products fall over the past week, but so far only in China. That trend could be replicated around the world next week, however.

Two of Australia’s leading renewable investment and advisory firms, the Clean Energy Finance Corp (CEFC) and Ironstone Capital, have combined to form Warada, an integrated development and fund management company set to invest in early stage greenfield projects across the whole industry of renewable energy.

The City of Adelaide is going big on technology for low-carbon living. It has announced a new round of incentives for solar, bidirectional EV charging infrastructure, energy storage and controlled load under its Sustainability Incentives Scheme.

The Berejiklian government is gearing up to deliver on its election pledge and roll out interest-free loans for home battery systems. The program holds the promise to help up to 300,000 households save hundreds of dollars on their power bills.