The new Powerwall warranty quietly introduced into Australia last month says you are not covered for ‘normal degradation’. Whatever that means.
Can I interest you in buying a revolutionary new energy storage system? It is called the Brakulator 7000. It has a usable storage capacity of 6.4 kilowatt-hours with a continuous power output of 3.3 kilowatts. And the great thing is it comes with a 10 year warranty.
Are you interested? [Read more…]
What will give you the lowest bill, a standard or time of use tariff? What if you add solar? What about batteries?
Australians pay for grid electricity in two ways. The most common way is a standard tariff. But you can also choose a time-of-use tariff.
This is where you pay a fixed rate for each kilowatt-hour used, plus a hefty supply charge. Australians have been paying for electricity this way since the the electricity meter, invented in 1888, was developed into the ‘spinning dial’ type in 1914. So Australians have been using standard tariffs for over a century. [Read more…]
Sungrow and ABB announce a ‘strategic alliance’ to make big inverters.
Sungrow, China’s largest manufacturer of inverters, and ABB, a Swiss based company that is one of the largest engineering conglomerates in the world, have joined forces to create a strategic alliance which is expected to benefit both companies far more than a non-strategic alliance would.
On the 2nd of June they signed an agreement to work together to design a megawatt class 1,500 volt, central inverter system using Sungrow’s inverters and ABB’s transformers.
They have pinky promised to also promote each others’ products and improve cooperation between the two companies for a period of three years. [Read more…]
One of Juno’s 3 solar panels. This section will produce about 5kW in earth orbit, and 185W in Jupiter Orbit. Image: NASA/JPL
Juno, the first solar powered space probe to be sent to Jupiter, entered orbit around the gas giant planet yesterday. Its mission is to probe Jupiter in ways it has never been probed before to discover clues about its formation, internal structure, water content, and weather. Part of its mission is the investigate the Great Red Spot. However, because it is currently only around half the size it was 100 years ago, it is now really just an Okay Red Spot. [Read more…]
Sunpower X series panels have breached 24% efficiency.
I have previously mentioned SunPower makes excellent solar panels. This definitely includes their uncanny X-Series, which are a high efficiency, high reliability, line of monocrystalline panels. In January they broke the record for most efficient solar panel with a figure of 22.8%. And now, less than six months later, they have increased that by an impressive 1.3 percentage points to 24.1%.
I can only marvel at the improvements in PV efficiency that have occurred so far in 2016. Just six months ago I would have said the chance of any panel exceeding 24% efficiency this year would have been a long shot, but lately improving efficiency has been smashing records like an unstoppable juggernaut. [Read more…]
If you are on the 60c Feed In Tariff in NSW (AKA the Solar Bonus Scheme) you really need to get a new meter by January 1.
Across NSW there are 146,000 homes and businesses receiving a gross feed-in tariff for the electricity their rooftop solar generates.
This tariff ends on the 31st of December 2016.
If those 146,000 homes and businesses don’t get new import/export meters installed by the end of the year, their owners (or tenants) will be in the financially painful position of not just losing their generous 60-66c feed-in tariff, but also receiving nothing for the solar electricity they export into the grid.
At the start of this year there was a lot of confusion about just what people would have to do to get new meters installed. It became clear there were not enough specialist metering electricians in the state to get the job done – even if they worked on nothing else for the rest of the year. Fortunately, the rules have been changed and the pool of people permitted to replace meters is expanding. [Read more…]
Q-Cells clever Q.ANTUM design of solar cell promises better efficiency for cheaper, multi crystalline panels.
Hanwha Q Cells has smashed the record for polysilicon solar panel efficiency like a robot driving a steel fist through a fragile silicon wafer. They have achieved an efficiency of 19.5% with a standard sized panel, 1.67m by 1m in size. The module is 301 watts and Hanwha claims it was produced using standard processes on industrial scale production equipment, which means it should be ready to go into production. [Read more…]
The Creator of The Renewable Energy Target. Mr John Howard.
Australia’s Renewable Energy Target, or RET, was first introduced in 2001 by Liberal PM John Howard. It has been almost entirely responsible for getting Australia’s graceful collection of wind turbines erected and getting solar panels on the roofs of 19% of our homes.
However, despite all its success, not many of us know very much about the RET.
This is understandable, as on the surface the topic is fairly dry. But once you get past that desiccated surface you soon discover what lies beneath is actually about as dry as crawling through the Simpson Desert without water for three days and then eating six plain SAO biscuits off a salt flat.
But don’t worry, I’m going to save you from having to experience that yourself. I recently filled in the gaps my knowledge of the RET and I’m ready to present you with all the juicy tidbits of information I gleaned from that dry and dusty landscape.
Feel free not to read on if you are already confident in your mastery of the topic. But before you do that, just be certain you can answer in the affirmative when I ask, do you get RET yet? [Read more…]
AGL and Origin Energy have just announced price rises in South Australia.
Australia’s two largest electricity retailers have announced they will increase prices in South Australia from the 1st of July. Origin Energy will raise prices by 6.5% increase and AGL will raise them by around 10%. [Read more…]
The Sunny Boy Storage. A low(ish) cost way to add a Powerwall and other batteries to your existing solar system. Image: SMA
The SMA Sunny Boy Storage is a battery-inverter that you can use to add battery storage to your existing rooftop solar system.
It does not store energy itself, but integrates modern battery packs, such as the Tesla Powerwall, into your home’s electricity supply. It is exciting because it is the cheapest and simplest way to add a battery such as the Powerwall to your existing system. This is because it can re-use your existing inverter – no need to replace it. [Read more…]
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