Australia urged to move quickly to make most of booming battery sector
Australia has been warned it must act swiftly to capture the economic and strategic opportunities of a booming battery industries sector that is predicted could provide $55.2 billion (USD 36.87 billion) in additional gross domestic product to the economy by the end of the decade.
Strong interest in hydrogen certification, Bureau Veritas reports
Bureau Veritas tells pv magazine that there is a great deal of interest in hydrogen certification schemes in Australia, Europe, the United States, and the Middle East.
Why capacity factor is an increasingly simplistic way to compare solar farm performance
Capacity factor is often discussed when evaluating and comparing the efficiency and performance of solar farms. However, looking just at this metric can be misleading as it ignores many underlying technical and commercial factors, as solar farm specifications almost never align for a simple apples-to-apples comparison.
Global study highlights potential of floating solar
An international group of researchers has calculated the potential for floating solar across the world. The results show a generation potential of 9,434 TWh per year across 114,555 global reservoirs, with 30% of their area covered. The United States leads with 1,911 TWh per year of potential, with Australia coming in 8th, with 210 TWh per year.
Detailed customer energy data is becoming available, here’s what the government scheme could do for industry
Access to extremely detailed consumer energy data is becoming available in Australia part of the federal government’s Consumer Data Right scheme. Used imaginatively, the data has the potential to improve how investment decisions are made, and could even open up new approaches to energy retailing, Stuart Low, founder of Biza tells pv magazine Australia.
CEC to no longer oversee solar accreditation, product listing contract up for grabs
Following consultations with industry stakeholders, Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator will open an application process to decide which organisation will list approved solar panel and inverter equipment lists in future, part of a major overhaul to the industry.
Developer X-Elio sells to Brookfield extending fund’s position in Australia
Canadian investment giant Brookfield will acquire the remaining 50% stake in Spain-based renewables developer X-Elio from its joint venture partner, investment firm KKR. X-Elio has more than 500 MW of projects in development in Australia and the move from Brookfield, which is also currently looking to takeover Origin Energy, a major Australian “gentailer,” extends the ambitious company’s hold in Australia.
Shifting behaviour to enable a renewable future
The Australian energy grid is on the cusp of a big bang moment. The combination of market factors and situations we’re currently seeing will lead to a thrust of innovation. Renewable energy and smart devices are here to push forward the way we consume energy and drive a change for the better of our energy bills and for the environment.
Queensland’s publicly-owned battery rollout sees next town selected for 8 MWh install
Queensland is continuing its rollout of publicly-owned batteries, announcing the town of Emerald in its Central Highlands Region will soon host a 4 MW / 8 MWh battery. While the announcement doesn’t make reference to buzz term ‘community batteries,’ it seems the state is effectively rolling out a storage fleet to deliver on the promises of the concept.
Investment ‘boom’ in Australia sees utility-scale jump 50%, puts targets within reach
New investment in solar and wind hit a record 7.1 GW in Australia in 2022, with the Clean Energy Regulator reporting a 50% increase in large-scale projects reaching final investment decision compared to 2021. In total, 5.3 GW of new renewable energy capacity was added to the grid in 2022, according to the Regulator’s State of Renewables report.
