Markets

Australian mining and green energy major Fortescue has revealed plans to establish a new clean energy technology manufacturing plant in the United States as it looks to take advantage of America’s $565 billion (USD 369 billion) Inflation Reduction Act.

The green investments arm of global financial services group Macquarie Asset Management has launched a new specialist renewable energy business targeting an initial pipeline of 4 GW of wind, solar and battery energy storage projects across Australia.

The Western Australian government will invest more than $700 million (USD 455 million) to deliver the step change in electricity transmission infrastructure needed to unlock renewable energy generation opportunities that will support the state’s energy transformation.

Manufacturing capacity has been ramping up so quickly that even impressive installation growth cannot keep pace. Molly Morgan, senior research analyst at UK-based research firm Exawatt, explores the relationship between PV supply and demand and assesses the likelihood of overproduction.

Electric vehicle and battery energy storage manufacturing giant Tesla is aiming to “disrupt the traditional incumbents” in Australia’s electricity retail sector with its application for an electricity retailer licence having been accepted by the market regulator.

Amid predictions Australia’s energy system faces a summer of extreme demand, the market operator has forecast that renewables, including 2 GW of generation capacity from new wind and solar projects, will counter the risk of power outages.

The managing director of Omers Infrastructure, a Canadian infrastructure fund with stakes in FRV Australia and Transgrid, has said the company is “well short” of its investment hopes for Australian renewables.

The NSW government has published a suite of draft guidelines for renewable projects, most notably proposing community benefit sharing fees of $850/MW per annum for solar, and $1050/MW for wind. While the guidelines are an attempt to level the playing field between communities, local councils, and big developers, some fear the proposed rules could undercut ongoing negotiations.

A Dutch-German research team has tested how a series of framed messages may be used to boost PV system sales, addressing both self-interest and environmental concerns, and has found that all the proposed messages are effective at promoting the purchase of solar panel installations.

Sri Lanka’s government-owned Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) is inviting applications for the development of 1 MW to 5 MW ground-mounted solar projects – totaling 70 MW – with 20-year power purchase agreements (PPA).