Markets & Policy

Authors of the “World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2023” define the future role of nuclear energy in the global energy mix as “irrelevant” and “marginal.” The authors add that there were 407 operational reactors producing 365 GW in the middle of the year, which is less than installed capacity predictions for solar by the end of the year.

GCube Insurance says that hail damage accounts for less than 2% of filed claims but constitutes more than 50% of total costs for solar facility loss claims.

One of Australia’s largest property developers has joined forces with Energy Bay, which specialises in distributed renewable energy solutions for property landlords. Energy Bay is making it possible for Stockland to utilise the energy produced at its properties with large rooftops and low energy use, such as its warehouses, to provide extra energy for its high-energy use properties.

EnergyAustralia has released the concept design for a 335 MW pumped hydro energy storage and generation project it plans to develop at Lake Lyell near Lithgow in central western New South Wales.

Australia ranks as the fifth most attractive destination for green investment and development opportunities according to multinational consultancy EY’s latest renewable energy country attractiveness index.

With the consistently unambitious forecasts for solar trotted out by entities such as the International Energy Agency (IEA) now a matter of record, a German risk management company has tried to predict more realistic figures for 2030 and beyond.

Australians have installed a record number of both heat pumps and rooftop solar system this quarter, according to Clean Energy Regulator. If Q4, typically solar’s biggest quarter, proves substantial, the nation could match its annual rooftop record of 3.2 GW set in 2021.

AGL and Australian battery recycling startup, Renewable Metals, have signed a deal to investigate the viability of building a lithium battery recycling facility at AGL’s envisioned Hunter Energy Hub, formally one of Australia’s most significant coal centres.

New South Wales was home to 13 of the top 20 performing solar farms in November, with the state generating 682 GWh from utility-scale PV. Overall, Australia’s large-scale renewable generation was up 7% from the previous November, Rystad’s Senior Renewables Analyst Dave Dixon said.

Redback Technologies has announced inverters certified as compliant with Queensland’s dynamic connections for energy exports. This enables homeowners to export energy back into the grid at a flexible rate so that energy output is only limited in roughly 2% of the time when excess power from PV installations would overwhelm the grid.