Markets

Solar energy will satisfy more than 50% of global energy demand within a decade according to a new modelling tool that also predicts solar costs will continue falling by 10% a year.

Australia’s rooftop solar market finished 2024 on a high with about 309 MW of monthly installations delivering one of the best December totals of recent years and putting the national trend back on the up.

After tumbling to record lows in 2024 on the back of lower metal costs and increased scale, lithium-ion battery prices are expected to enter a period of stabilisation.

Big BESS is booming in Australia, with almost 5 GW of projects under construction last year, according Rystad Energy. While encouraging, the analyst reports that the volume remains insufficient to overcome growing rates of renewable curtailment. “We have around 3 GW operational at the moment, but about half of that is still in commissioning. So you still only have 1.5 GW on the market where the average load is 23 GW,” Rystad Energy’s David Dixon said.

Australian Vanadium Limited’s plan to establish a major vanadium mine in Western Australia’s mid-west have firmed up with its proposal receiving the tick of approval from the state’s Environmental Protection Authority.

Solar and wind are being installed at a rate that is three times faster than all other new electricity sources combined. This offers compelling market-based evidence that PV and wind are now the most competitive and practical methods for deploying new generating capacity.

Owners of rooftop solar arrays in Victoria could soon get almost nothing for exporting their excess power into the grid with the Essential Services Commission releasing a draft decision that would slash payments in response to the rapid uptake of the technology.

Energy infrastructure provider GenusPlus Group has landed a $270 million contract to deliver a “critical” upgrade of Western Australia’s main electricity network as part of the state government’s plan to unlock existing renewable generation capacity, and allow the addition of new renewables to facilitate the retirement of coal-fired generation.

The Australian Energy Market Commission has released a final determination to allow virtual power plants to compete directly with large-scale generators in the energy market, scheduled to begin in 2027.

In five key trends, pv magazine looks back over a year that saw PV module prices fall lower than many thought possible, while demand was restrained by grid congestion, among other challenges. Energy storage has had a strong year and geopolitics is seeing solar and battery manufacturing enter new regions as competition drives technical innovation.