The International Solar Energy Society explains how Australia’s rapid expansion of solar and wind energy has not increased wholesale electricity prices, which have remained stable since 2016. Rooftop solar, now widespread and highly cost-effective, provides the country with resilient, low-emission power, making all-electric homes increasingly independent from the grid.

Over the weekend the federal government announced major changes to its $2.3 billion home battery subsidy program. The changes include nearly $5 billion in extra funding and adjustments to the financial support provided for different-sized batteries. They follow recent reporting that the program is subsidising unnecessarily large home batteries and blowing out in cost.

Post-COP30 analysis has centred on the contentious debate over fossil-fuel phase-out wording. Yet the most significant development for the solar sector was not part of the negotiating text at all.

The Australian electricity industry has transformed over the past two decades, driven by the rise of household solar and other renewable energy sources. Since 2010, supported by government incentives and improving technology, rooftop solar installations have surged.

The federal government’s $2.3 billion Cheaper Home Batteries Program is subsidising unnecessarily large energy storage systems and blowing out in cost.

Danish renewables major European Energy has secured development approval for its plans to build the 1.1 GW Upper Calliope Solar Farm near the industrial city of Gladstone in central Queensland.

Renewables developer and electricity retailer Flow Power has reached financial close on its Bennett’s Creek battery energy storage project being developed in the heart of Victorian coal country.

The first solar-battery hybrid facility approved in the National Electricity Market, the $190 million Quorn Park Solar Hybrid project developed by Potentia Energy in New South Wales, has been energised.

French energy giant Engie will power all four Big Bash League cricket matches at the Engie Stadium, at the Sydney Olympic Park with government accredited GreenPower, starting 20 December 2025.

Electricity distributor Ausgrid will unlock 1 GW of transfer capacity from the Hunter-Central Coast Renewable Energy Zone by upgrading its existing distribution poles and wires, instead of building of building new ones.

Venergy Solar has completed what it says is one of the largest embedded network solar projects in Australia with 1,120 rooftop PV systems installed across four of property developer Stockland’s land-lease communities in Victoria.

The Chinese manufacturer has launched a new series of three-phase hybrid inverters ranging from 80 kW to 100 kW. The new products feature eight MPPTs with up to 42 A input current.

The Australian Energy Regulator has released its third annual export services network performance report on facilitating consumer energy resources in Australia’s two-way energy system.

A family-owned California winery has replaced grid electricity with onsite solar generation, reducing power costs and providing a live test site for floating photovoltaic research.

First Nations Point Pearce Aboriginal Community in South Australia has negotiated with AGL Energy to have rooftop solar installed on every residents’ home, in a template First Nations Clean Energy Network encourages other communities to follow.

Japanese researchers have found sodium-ion batteries using hard carbon anodes can intrinsically charge faster than lithium-ion batteries, challenging long-held assumptions in battery research.

Transgrid and Elecnor Australia, construction partners on the $4.1 billion, 700 kilometre EnergyConnect transmission project have clocked more than 10 million worker hours on the epic project involving the construction of over 1,000 transmission towers.

Marinus Link has awarded $994 million in contracts as part of the TasVic Greenlink joint venture of DT Infrastructure and Samsung C&T Corporation to deliver the balance of works package for Stage 1.

South Korean researchers have developed a novel bilayer tin oxide electron transport layer for improving efficiency and stability of back-contact solar cells.

An Oxford researcher has found that transparent conducting electrodes can reduce perovskite–silicon tandem solar cell efficiency by over 2%, with losses linked to electrical resistance, optical effects, and geometric trade-offs. Using a unified optical–electrical model, the scientist showed how careful optimisation of TCE stacks, coatings, and cell design is critical to closing the gap toward the 37%–38% efficiency frontier.

A group of researchers from the University of New South Wales and Chinese module manufacturer Jolywood has conducted a comprehensive assessment of how laser-assisted firing processes influence the behaviour of TOPCon cells under the thermal conditions encountered during soldering, lamination, and high-temperature stress.

United States-headquartered SEG Solar is constructing a 3 GW ingot and wafer factory in Indonesia. The new production facility is located at its existing cell manufacturing plant, completing an end-to-end solar manufacturing chain for the company.

Gokin has launched back-contact solar modules ranging from 480 W to 780 W for residential, commercial, industrial, and utility-scale projects. The series supports 1,500 V systems and reaches efficiencies of up to 24.8%.

The Chinese manufacturer said its new Astro 7 TOPCon module features an innovative self-cleaning frame and a power conversion efficiency of 23.2%.

Solar energy forecasting company Solstice AI research has found a 10% improvement in weather / solar forecasting accuracy would generate an extra $38 million per year in profit for Australia’s utility solar, and worldwide, $9.5 billion.

Australian shipbuilder Incat Tasmania has powered up the world’s largest battery-electric ship – and the largest electric vehicle of any type on the planet – and successfully completed its first e-motor trial in Hobart.

The agency tasked with helping manage Australia’s move to a net-zero economy has launched an interactive map featuring more than 800 Commonwealth-supported utility scale renewable energy and net-zero projects, transmission lines, and industrial projects.

Akaysha Energy, the battery storage platform backed by global funds giant Blackrock, has announced the completion of its first big battery project with the 155 MW / 298 MWh Ulinda Park energy storage system in Queensland now online.

The New South Wales government has provided planning approval for the proposed $209 million Armidale battery project on the condition that developer Valent Energy invests more than $2.5 million in local community projects.

The Australian arm of Spanish energy giant Iberdrola Iberdrola is poised to begin early testing of its Broadsound Solar Farm after Queensland transmission network operator Powerlink energised the grid connection to the 377 MWdc facility ahead of schedule.