Aussie bankers are finally investing in solar farms!
It can get a bit tiring sitting here at SQHQ listening to the solar narks peddling the age old line that “solar is completely uneconomic and will destroy our precious mining economy”.
Luckily a solar milestone flashed by our radar last week which drives yet another nail into the argument put forward by those who think that open cast mining is the true path to a 21st century economy. [Read more…]
Belgians living in Flanders are now taxed for owning solar power!
Know how you wake up in a cold sweat after a particularly bad nightmare readers? And I mean really bad dream (no not the one about NSW premier big, bad Barry “Bumper” O’Farrell and the three feed-in tariffs — that’s another story). Sitting bolt upright as your eyes slam awake you look around and calm yourself by saying “Thank [insert deity], it was all a dream”. Well your correspondent had the same visceral reaction when a particularly piece of nasty news reached his inbox this week.
Though, regrettably, the “it was only a dream” part may be questionable. [Read more…]
Image: Parliament of Australia website
If you think this column exists solely to bash the often non-existent solar energy policies of certain state governments and Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition you’re mostly correct. We’ve often been critical of the myopic policies taken towards solar in both federal and state capitals, a “scorched earth” policy directed by many pollies towards solar energy in particular.
This lack of consistency for big solar investors as well as those wishing to install domestic solar systems is a major cause of the highly damaging “boom and bust” syndrome that has characterised the Australian solar energy sector. [Read more…]
Can people power get one of these built in Port Augusta?
The Victorian solar industry and supporters are the latest to suffer what is becoming an event as predictable as Gerry Harvey whinging about online retailers at Christmas time. This was when Premier Ted “The Blade” Baillieu’s government announced a slashing of the state’s feed-in tariff from 25 cents per kilowatt hour down to 8 cents.
However despite being hammered left, right and centre by newly-installed conservative governments across the nation, solar energy in this country has always enjoyed massive support from ordinary folk.
So why don’t the pollies (like video refs) see the game the same as the punters? [Read more…]
Our Spanish hombres, FRV, are bringing a solar farm like this to Royalla in ACT.
If you thought our nation’s capital was best known for its dodgy laws, war memorials and pollies’ hot air, you’ll need to think again. This last week has seen the ACT Minister for the Environment and Sustainable Development, Simon Corbell, position the ACT as the country’s solar power capital.
How so? Did Mr Corbell move Canberra a little closer to the sun, Icarus-style? Well sort of, with the announcement this week that Spanish renewables firm Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV) is to build a 20MW solar power facility, to be named Royalla, in the District of Tuggeranong. [Read more…]
Tony seems to be struggling with the reality of affordable solar
After a week which saw Opposition Leader Tony Abbott perform more gaffes, backflips and nonsensical quotes than the average Barnum and Bailey circus, your columnist thought it high time to check out The Man’s policy on clean energy. This was a bit more difficult than first expected due to the fact that Big Tony, and his front bench colleagues….er… don’t seem to have a properly functioning clean energy policy to present to the Australian people. [Read more…]
One of the key sub-themes that tends to elbow its way through these SolarQuotes weekly columns is the understating, or inability to recognise, of the potential of solar energy in Australia. Time after time we at SolarQuotes HQ are forced to report on cuts in support from slow-moving and slow-thinking state governments. The bad news is not restricted to the states either with influential Canberra pollies such as Martin “Fossil Fuel” Ferguson bemoaning the alleged lack of growth in the solar sector.
This wouldn’t be so bad except that old Fossil Fuel is Minister for Energy and Natural Resources! [Read more…]
Stop guessing, start measuring!
I got an email from Dec in Melbourne this week who is very worried that his solar installers have sold him a lemon:
Hi Finn, Since my last email, my 4.0kw solar has been independently checked and I have been told it was found to be installed correctly. At this time it is producing only 1800w on a clear sunny day. It seems that no one has an answer as to why the production is low as the system is only producing an average of 7.2kwh/day. Do you have any idea as to what I can do to try and resolve this as I am really struggling with getting this sorted out.
So has Dec been sold a heap of junk? Is his solar power system producing enough power for its size, location and the time of year (June) ? [Read more…]
Most Aussies Seem To Like Solar Power
A couple of renewable energy reports released recently have shown how important solar power is to the country and outlined (again) its major potential as an energy source. Unfortunately the studies also reveal how much our politicians still have a lot of catching up to do to reach the general consensus held by most Australians.
Firstly the results of the 100 Percent Renewable poll in which over 40 groups canvassed the opinions of around 12,000 Australians over renewable energy. The results were an extraordinary 94 percent of those polled believe that the government should do more to assist the construction of big solar plants in the country. [Read more…]
Interesting announcement this week that the ACT Government has passed legislation that clears the way for the introduction of the country’s first large-scale feed-in tariff (FIT). The solar bonus schemes have received a great deal of negative coverage in the last year or so as various state governments have backed away from their versions faster than cats at bath time (or is that being a little unkind to cats?).
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