News

Chinese PV module maker and project developerRisen Energyis pushing its 132 MW Merredin Solar Farm in WA’s Central Wheatbelt  towards full scale installation. The company is hungry to meet its ambitious goal to develop 2 GW of large-scale solar PV projects in Australia.

On the back of a combination of its industry-leading solar program and energy efficiencies, Vicinity Centers has announced a zero net carbon target by 2030 for its 34 shopping centers.

With a glut of solar capacity having come online this year, cheaper financing would help keep some of that momentum but policymakers cannot be persuaded of the economic benefits of clean energy unless state-owned utility EVN opens up.

Under the right conditions, solar batteries are economically beneficial for South Australian homeowners and can pay for themselves off within the warranty period, a new research finds.

Increased storage and strategic transmission development will be needed to ensure the lowest cost and risk transition of Australia’s energy system, the Australian Energy Market Operator states in its latest study. In 20 years time, the need for storage will be at a scale not seen before in the NEM, and both pumped hydro storage and distributed storage are set to play major roles in lowering wholesale electricity prices and building a reliable and resilient power system.

Australian super funds have called out for “comprehensive” and “long term” energy policy to be put in place in order to unlock investment in the electricity sector. The Industry Super Funds (ISA) and the Group Super Fund made the call in its Modernising Electricity Sectors report, released earlier this month.

Studies, reports and data continue to pile up, showing Australia is falling behind its international climate commitments. What is more, the nation is on track to become a global emissions superpower, and could be responsible for up to 17% of global emissions by 2030, according to new research. Another report shows Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions surged again in the first quarter of 2019 as the downward trend in the electricity sector reversed and fugitive emissions from the LNG industry reached record high.

Standards Australia has progressed AS/NZS: 5139 draft battery standard to the ballot stage for committee voting. The Smart Energy Council (SEC) believes the draft standard, while required to meet the needs of the fast growing battery segment, is not sufficiently thorough in addressing safety concerns.

This Swiss giant is following a trend as large multinational high-tech companies see their role as redesigning infrastructure rather than supplying inverters at ever lower margins. Schneider Electric has pulled out of large scale solar, Siemens’ Kaco acquisition and Junelight launch show increasing interest in the C&I and residential markets, and GE is likely to divest its power conversion business due to low profit margins in that sector.

China’s slowdown in installations last year was more than made up for by expansion elsewhere, according to IHS Markit. The news comes amid increasing market fragmentation – with the biggest engineering, procurement and construction business boasting less than 3% market share – and internationalization, with almost half of the top 15 companies operating across more than one region.