Posts By Ronald Brakels, Author & Fact-Checker At SolarQuotes

What On Earth Are ZNShine Solar Panels?

ZNshine solar panels

ZNShine Solar Panels:  Low Cost & Tier One But No Australian Office

If you want the dirt on ZNShine panels I’ve got some bad news for you.  According to ZNShine Solar, dirt just slides right off their new graphene coated panels when it rains.  [Read more…]

Tesla Reveals Model Y Electric Car And — Surprisingly — Elon Musk Doesn’t Promise The Moon

Model Y

Tesla Reveals Model Y Electric Car — It Looks Very S3XY

At this moment it is 1:15 on an Adelaide Friday afternoon and I am in the SolarQuotes office waiting for the Tesla Model Y car reveal to begin.  [Read more…]

Tongwei Solar: The Biggest Solar Company You’ve Never Heard Of

tongwei solar cell factory

Who The Hell Are Tongwei Solar?  The Good, The Bad, And The Weird.

Tongwei Solar is not well known in Australia.  While it’s possible goldfish fans are aware Tongwei Group is the world’s largest producer of fish food, their solar subsidiary is very low key.  This is despite it being one of the world’s largest producers of solar cells (if not the largest) with a production capacity of 12 gigawatts.  [Read more…]

Craig Kelly Calls SA Big Battery A Failure – After It Works Exactly As Expected

Liberal backbencher Craig Kelly MP and the Big Battery

Liberal backbencher Craig Kelly is upset the SA big battery is not magical.

Craig Kelly is…

  • A Liberal Member of Parliament.
  • A supporter of health damaging and environmentally destructive coal power.
  • The only Federal MP with a nuclear reactor lodged in his seat.
  • A man who resembles a big cuddly koala bear with a shaved face.

Recently he published a 419 word essay on his facebook page titled, “THE GREAT BATTERY CONJOB EXPOSED”. [Read more…]

Canberra Battery Test Centre Update — BYD Battery Comes Out On Top

Lithium Ion Battery Test Centre Results

The results show some big name batteries performing pretty poorly…

The Lithium Ion Battery Test Centre in Canberra has released a new report.  They released it 5 months ago but I’ll make apologies for tardy reporting later.  [Read more…]

Australian Coal Power Will Be Quickly Killed By Low Cost Renewables

Coal being pushed out by wind and solar power

Low Cost Renewables Will Soon Drive Coal Power Out Of The Market

Last month the entire country sweltered under an oppressive heatwave — except the half known as Western Australia.  As air conditioner power consumption soared on the 25th, 40% of Victoria’s coal generators failed followed by rolling blackouts. When faced with this incontrovertible evidence of coal’s unreliability, the government dedicated itself to the rapid phaseout of coal under its “affordable, reliable 24/7 power” program.

Sorry, only kidding.  What they actually did was offer to pay the debts of new coal power stations that go bust. [Read more…]

Is ARENA Wasting Your Money On Useless Consultant Reports?

 ACIL Allen Consultants hydrogen report for ARENA

If you are in a hurry, the summary of this post is: ‘In my humble opinion: Yes’.

I recently wrote about Labor’s Hydrogen Plan announcement where they referred to a report by ACIL Allen Consultants saying Australia’s hydrogen exports could be over $3 billion a year by 2030.  In my previous article I explained why this is extremely unlikely.

This article is going to be 2,000 words dedicated to me complaining. Specifically about why I consider the consultant report titled “Opportunites For Australia From Hydrogen Exports” worse than useless and why I think ARENA — Australia’s Renewable Energy Agency — wasted your money paying for it. [Read more…]

40% Of Victoria’s Coal Power Out Of Action During Heatwave While Solar Soldiers On

Solar energy more reliable than coal power

Solar Power Proves Far More Reliable Than Coal Power During Record Breaking Heatwave

As I’m sure you’re aware, South Australia and the eastern states were hit by a short but intense heatwave last week.  In Adelaide temperatures hit 46.6 degrees on Thursday.  A sweaty record.  It was almost unbearable.  Or at least I think it was unbearable.  I’m not sure because I passed out at about 10 in the morning and didn’t regain consciousness until after nightfall.  [Read more…]

Labor’s Hydrogen Plan Is A Lead Zeppelin

Labor hydrogen plan

Why Australia Is Unlikely To Ever Export Large Quantities Of Hydrogen

As Michael reported this week, Labor has announced in a media release that, if elected, they will spend $3 million building a “National Hydrogen Innovation Hub” in Gladstone and make over $1 billion available in loans for to develop hydrogen production.  Labor also say they will remove regulatory barriers and make research into hydrogen production, storage, and transport a priority . [Read more…]

Do Solar Panels Degrade Over Time? Yes, But Not By Much

Solar panel degradation explained

Solar panels are amazing things.  They cut pollution, save planets, and — by draining its power — move us closer to humanity’s ancient dream of destroying the sun.  But they’re not quite perfect.  If you happen to buy the cheapest panels you can get your hands on I’m sure you’ll soon find they can be very far from perfect.  So bloody far you’ll need a goddamn spaceship to get there. [Read more…]

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