Australia

German-headquartered project developer juwi Renewable Energy has inked an agreement with the University of Queensland to deliver a solar+storage hybrid power solution at its research station located in the Great Barrier Reef.

Applications have officially opened for 50% rebates on rooftop solar installations under the Victorian government’s Solar Homes program, announced just weeks ago. The subsidies will be available until 30 June next year.

Australia’s policy maker for the energy markets has approved the establishment a national register of small-scale distributed energy resources, which will give AEMO and distribution network businesses more data to help in planning and operating the power system as it transforms.

The developers that emerged as winners in the Victorian government’s first renewable energy auction have confirmed receiving support agreements from the state to ensure revenue certainty for the projects. The companies have also outlined their construction plans, some of which even include batteries.

AGL has announced it will no longer install solar panels on homes, a decision which has brought with it a $47 million loss.

Although initially expected to deliver around 650 MW, Victoria’s first renewable energy auction has smashed the goal, delivering 928 MW of renewable capacity. Six projects will be developed in total, three wind and three solar, under the state’s renewable energy target. In a separate announcement, the Andrews government promised to provide half price solar batteries for 10,000 Victorian households, if re-elected.

By keeping up the current rate of solar PV and wind deployment, Australia is forecast to comfortably exceed the 2020 RET of 33,000 GWh, achieve 26% emissions reduction by 2020/21 and meet its Paris greenhouse emissions target in 2024/25, shows new analysis by the Australian National University (ANU). In 2018 and 2019 combined, over 10 GW of renewable energy could be installed.

The South Australian government will launch its Home Battery Scheme in October, which will offer South Australians subsidies of up to $6,000. In the wake of the government’s announcement, the German storage provider has revealed plans to manufacture up to 50,000 battery storage units at the former Holden site in Elizabeth, creating hundreds of jobs.

The Sydney-based publicly-listed developer is planning to finance construction of the 50 MW Jemalong solar project either on a merchant basis given the strong NSW price forecast, or under a potential offtake arrangement.

Renewables are stealing the march over coal in Australia, and the international outlook is for lower coal demand. Today the international Coal Transitions project released its findings, based on global coal scenarios and detailed case studies by teams in China, India, South Africa, Australia, Poland and Germany.