‘Pretty crazy’: Queensland’s solar + storage payback periods plunge
Solar payback periods worsened in Australia between 2020 and 2022, but have now turned a corner, data from analyst Sunwiz illustrates. Queensland has seen the most remarkable journey, with payback periods for residential solar and storage falling from 10 to 6.6 years within 12 months.
ClearVue’s next-gen ‘solar window’ tested in Singapore
Western Australian solar window company ClearVue Technologies has completed third-party testing with the Singapore Building and Construction Authority, saying the results illustrate strong thermal and energy outcomes.
WA ushers in major reforms to support transition on its main island grid
A package of major regulatory and market reforms designed to support Western Australia’s energy transformation have gone live. The changes relate to the state’s main islanded grid, known as the SWIS.
WA to charge royalties on natural hydrogen projects
With the regulatory scaffolding around natural hydrogen starting to be erected across the country, the Western Australian government has confirmed it will charge a royalty on hydrogen extracted from underground geological formations, otherwise known as natural or gold hydrogen.
Vanadium miners merge to make most of battery mineral
Vanadium explorers Technology Metals Australia and Australian Vanadium Limited will look to accelerate the development of the critical battery mineral in Western Australia after agreeing to a merger of their adjoining projects in the state’s mid-west.
$1 billion in battery system, inverter contracts for Collie & Kwinana big batteries awarded by WA government
The Western Australian government has awarded contracts for its 500 MW / 2,000 MWh big battery in Collie and the 200 MW / 800 MWh extension to the existing Kwinana battery. China’s CATL is set to deliver the battery units for both projects, while Spain’s Power Electronics will supply inverters.
AEMC proposes raising price caps to ensure market reliability over energy transition
The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) has proposed increasing price caps on the country’s main electricity market. This is meant to allow investors to respond to fill gaps created by ageing coal generation.
Substantial increase in solar fires caused by DC isolators recorded in state data
Data shows a sharp increase in the number of fires caused by the DC isolators that separate the grid from solar panels. ABC News gathered state-by-state data revealing a dramatic increase in fire incidents in the last 12 months.
Report exposes Australia’s biggest fossil fuel subsidy and how mining industry could be better served
A new report by Climate Energy Finance has revealed Australia’s diesel Fuel Tax Credit Scheme disincentivises growth in future industries and will cost taxpayers $37 billion (USD 23.8b) in lost tax revenue by 2030. The report also illustrates how capping these rebates represents a multifaceted advantage for Australian manufacturing of low and zero-emission mining vehicles.
NASA pictures hydrogen-emitting ‘fairy circles’ in WA
NASA has released an image of “fairy circle” clusters in the North Perth Basin of Western Australia, noting the formations have been discovered to naturally seep hydrogen gas from their perimeters.
