More calls for review of Victoria’s Solar Homes Program
Following similar calls from other industry bodies, the Clean Energy Council has urged the Victorian government to review its landmark Solar Homes Program and warned about the serious effects its dynamics has on the industry.
Terregra switches on its first merchant solar farm in South Australia
The 5 MW Mobilong Solar Farm will run on a fully merchant offtake arrangement over its 30-year lifetime.
Curtin’s new thermal battery project brings on the midnight sun
An international research collaboration led by Curtin University is set to help decarbonise mining and other off-grid industry with concentrating solar power that delivers clean energy night and day.
Smart meter time of use pricing to drive up household energy costs without the help of solar and batteries
New research released this week by The Australia Institute shows that ‘time of use pricing’ (ToU) facilitated by smart meters is likely to drive up household energy costs by $429 a year on top of already high prices. Analysis of national electricity market data suggests that demand for electricity in Australia is very inelastic, which makes ToU more likely to increase the profits of electricity companies than to assist consumers. Households with solar PV and batteries, however, are best suited to cope with this type of pricing.
Genex’s Kidston pumped hydro project lands $610 million federal loan
Australia’s first large-scale project to use pumped hydro to store solar generated power, the Kidston facility in north Queensland, has landed a $610 million loan from the Federal Government’s the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF).
Planet Ark Power smooths the way for urban solar farms
Voltage regulation creates challenges for grid operation, particularly at high penetration levels of solar and other distributed renewables. Fresh being recognised as energy transition pioneers at the recent Startup Energy Transition (SET) Awards in Berlin, Planet Ark Power and its behind-the-meter technology is looking to dynamize Australia’s, and the world’s, energy grids with distributed clean energy.
WA government looks to bolster battery minerals sector
The McGowan Government is continuing to forward WA’s Future Battery Industry Strategy with the launch on a new early-stage funding initiative. On Wednesday, the government announced a new online Funding Assistance Register, a further boost to the state’s ambition toward a world-leading, sustainable, future battery industry by 2025.
Two top solar innovators honoured at national engineering awards
Two UNSW affiliated solar engineers have been honoured as some of the country’s most innovative engineering minds at the annual Engineering Australia award ceremony this week for their work on ground-breaking solar solutions.
High voltage interconnection in place, installation set to get underway at WA’s largest PV project
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.
Vicinity sets net zero carbon target by 2030, as $73 million solar program nears completion
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.
