Australia's Climate Commission, headed by TIm Flannery, recently released a report that provided an in-depth look at the state of the country's solar power sector, including its rise over the past decade, current statistics and an outlook for the future.
One of the biggest takeaways from the report was that it that solar photovoltaics are finally becoming cheap enough that it makes sense for the average homeowner to invest in a system.
It's the "ordinary Australians," as the report deems them, that are responsible for helping the entire country shift toward a solar future. The facts and figures from the report are impressive, to say the least.
In some parts of the country, residents are seeing solar power compete with typical daytime electricity prices, and in the span of a decade, the price of installing solar panels has fallen more than 75 per cent. Perhaps this is why 2.6 million people are now using solar power.
All this growth is also reflected in the commercial side of solar. Despite boasting the most sunshine of any continent on the planet, businesses didn't capitalize on this natural resource until recently. However, with the recent growth, the solar industry employed about 16,700 people by the end of 2012.
Supporting global growth
One of the most exciting aspects of the report was the rising presence Australia has in the solar world. The proliferation seen in Australia was also noted in China, where $31.2 billion was invested in solar technologies in 2012.
Germany has also become a leader in solar power, and despite receiving less sun than Victoria every year, still has notched the the highest solar power capacity of any country.
Now it's time for Australia to climb those ranks and become a leader in solar power installations.
Posted by Mike Peacock