Small business can get a tax break on installing solar. Thanks Mr Hockey!
The Treasurer’s annual allocating of the shekels has come and gone and renewable energy fans are asking about solar energy in the Budget. How did we fare? Were we the subject of further cutbacks, maulings and downgradings as part of this federal government’s campaign against all things renewable?
Well yes and no is the best answer. [Read more…]
Will the Tesla Battery lead to a stampede of people leaving the grid? Photo: Tesla
[Update: Since I wrote this post (on the day the Powerwall was announced) Tesla have added some technical details that open up the possibility of installing the Powerwall for a much lower price than this blog post estimates. But – and it’s a big but – the cheaper installation will not allow you to go off grid. More details on the alternative install option here]
So Tesla has just announced a 10kWh home battery pack that costs US$3,500 (AUD$4,500) . The Tesla PowerWall will mount unobtrusively on the wall of your home and store your solar energy, so you can use it at night or when the grid goes down.
Lots of twitterers are proclaiming that Renewable Energy utopia has arrived. You’d be forgiven from thinking that, thanks to Tesla founder Elon Musk, all we have to do to divorce the grid is shell out three and a half grand.
Look – I don’t want to piss on anyone’s parade. This announcement is massive in lots of ways which I’ll get to soon. But you won’t be able to go off grid for that kind of money (yet).
Here’s what Aussie homeowners should know about the Telsa Powerwall [Read more…]
A good inverter is essential in the Australian sun.
Picking great inverters; Tier 1, 2 or 3?
Savvy solar customers are quickly realising that there is a very real difference between the quality of products and services you can find in the solar industry.
As a general rule, the old adage “you get what you pay for” generally holds true but the plethora of offers and solar companies can make selection tricky. Here at SolarQuotes I’ve helped make this choice a little easier by developing its own ranking system for installation companies.
But how do you choose a great inverter? [Read more…]
At the opening of the largest solar farm in Australia last week: Anthony Roberts MP -NSW Minister for Industry, Resources and Energy, Mark Speakman SC MP – NSW Minister for Environment, Andy Vesey – AGL CEO, Lesley Ryan – Nyngan Local Aboriginal Land Council, Ian Kay – ARENA CFO, Jack Curtis – First Solar, Regional Manager APAC, Ray Donald – Bogan Shire Mayor.
Two major stories lead the debate over solar power in Australia this week, both throwing up intriguing developments for our renewable energy future. Both asking the question: are we seeing the last of the fossil fuel industry in our country? [Read more…]
Will your solar purchase be Cheque, Savings or Credit?
Do the benefits of solar leasing in Australia outweigh the traps for young players?
It’s a given that Australians, perhaps more than any other nationality, prefer ownership over leasing or renting. Etched into our history of suspicion of authorities and banks, this is expressed most clearly in “The Great Australian Dream” — to completely own one’s own home or block of land.
This preference to be one’s own master is also true of domestic solar arrays. The preference for homeowners has been to buy their solar panels outright. However this may not be possible for all and new solar leasing models which have become popular overseas are now being introduced into the Australian market. Supporters of the model claim it provides access to solar energy where none was previously available. [Read more…]
Will the next Great Big Tax, be on cheap Chinese solar panels?
The long-delayed anti-dumping investigation into Chinese solar panels is having the desired effect of disrupting the solar industry in Australia, whatever the outcome.
Desired that is by the fossil fuel giants and their fans in federal politics.
One sure way to kill a fledgling industry is to manufacture uncertainty. Such has been the case with government support in the solar power industry. The on again, off again support mechanisms and half-hearted policies in general seem designed to keep the solar sector in a semi-permanent state of uncertainty. This has the effect of killing off investments because of the inability to guarantee investors a future “level playing field”.
Of course this is a lucrative strategy if you happen to have a heavy investment in fossil fuels. [Read more…]
Is it worth investing in a system that will divert your excess solar electricity away from the grid and into your hot water system?
This guest blog post has been written by experienced solar installer, electrician, solar company owner and all round good guy, Mark Cavanagh from MC Electrical in Brisbane.
Mark answers a really common question we are getting here at SolarQuotes: “Can I divert my excess solar energy into my hot water cylinder instead of selling it to the grid for a pittance?”
Take it away Mark:
With the reduction of the solar feed in tariff across Australia, and battery storage not economically viable yet, there has been an ever-increasing interest in developing ways to use the electricity you produce rather than feeding it back to the grid for 8c per kWh. [Read more…]
ARENA – the gift that keeps on giving.
Remember ARENA? The plucky Australian Renewable Energy Agency that has helped many renewable energy ventures and research with seed funding and other support? The ongoing benefits of ARENA include not only financial support but also because their involvement has helped pave the way for research and development in partnership with the private sector.
Wait. Ongoing? Didn’t ARENA get axed by the feds in their anti-renewables Budget cuts zeal a while back?
Well no. At least not yet. For ARENA, to quote an oft-used phrase, is the gift that keeps on giving.
Though the agency has, as you’ve probably heard, been axed by the federal government as part of its thinly-disguised ideological campaign against renewables, it still refuses to roll over and die. [Read more…]
SA takes the medal for most solar systems per household.
The latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show one in five households use some form of solar energy. The figures back anecdotal and other statistical evidence of a massive growth surge for solar that has occurred since the ABS first began publishing statistics on solar energy, back in 2011.
Then the figures were comparatively low with only around five percent of households using solar energy, said the ABS’ Karen Connaughton in a 3/12/2014 press release. However the change in just three years has been dramatic.
“Jump just three years, to 2014, and there are solar panels being used by fourteen per cent of all households.”, she said.
Add to this solar hot water and the numbers of households using solar energy in one form or another has jumped to 20 percent. [Read more…]
Can the word produce solar panel materials fast enough to keep up with demand?
It’s now almost a given that solar energy is the answer for the world’s energy problems. As experts have noted, it is entirely conceivable (perhaps inevitable) that solar will be the world’s first choice for energy by mid-century. With regular improvements in PV technology driving cost and efficiency breakthroughs, the predictions of the amount of total energy solar will make up is constantly being revised upwards.
Even those countries with a somewhat less than supportive legislative framework for renewables (any guesses?) are seeing solar growth cycles. As discussed last week, in these cases its a matter of the politicians lagging well behind the people on this vital issue of our times.
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