Posts By Staff Writer On SolarQuotes

WA government gives ground on solar energy purchase agreements

July 13, 2015 2017-10-25T09:34:29 by Leave a Comment
Perth skyline

It is now a lot easier for for WA and Perth Solar Installers to sell Power Purchase Agreements (or PPAs)

It’s not often that the Clean Energy Council and a conservative government agree on funding for solar energy purchase agreements but this week appears to have achieved that very scenario. For the West Australian government — that bastion of conservatism west of Adelaide — has introduced a scheme which will make it easier for customers to access solar energy.

The key is the removal of certain restrictions on solar power purchase agreements (PPAs), said Clean Energy Council WA Manager Dermot Costello. He added that the proposed change could help households and businesses make an informed choice about benefit from solar power, according to a CEC press release. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Policy Tagged With: ,

Interview: Finn Peacock talks solar battery storage in Australia (and more)

July 7, 2015 2017-10-25T09:34:41 by 24 Comments
finn peacock

Finn Peacock talks shop with Rich Bowden

It’s been a big year for news on solar battery storage in Australia. With the imminent release of Tesla’s Powerwall onto the market and influential reports predicting a new way of accessing energy, the trend has not been “if” but “when” renewables will end up dominating new energy takeup in the country.

But how much of this is kosher and how much wishful thinking? Are we on the cusp of a solar battery storage revolution? Can we start tearing up our electricity bills? To find out the answers we asked Finn Peacock, SolarQuotes founder (and professional cutter through bullshit), his opinion on exactly what has made 2015 so important in solar power and what his predictions are for the near future.

His frank analysis is fascinating, sometimes controversial and may surprise some. [Read more…]

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NEO report: Solar to lead $3.7 trillion charge as renewables outstrip fossil fuels

June 30, 2015 2017-10-25T09:34:58 by 2 Comments
solar panels and a placard

Trillions will be invested in renewables up to 2040

The way humans go about getting their electricity is set to change forever, according to an influential report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The New Energy Outlook 2015 (NEO) study, which was handed down last week, also found that solar energy would be at the vanguard of the change towards a more renewable future. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Economics Of Solar Tagged With:

Plants and Meatballs inspire breakthrough in solar storage technology

June 22, 2015 2017-10-25T09:35:10 by 2 Comments
meatballs and solar panels

What have meatballs and pasta got to do with solar storage? Read on to find out…

Recent breakthroughs have seen battery storage at the forefront of renewable technology news. Glitzy, much-heralded pressers in the past month or so have delivered announcements that have shaken the energy sector, giving us a hint that living free of fossil fuels may be commercially viable in the not-too-distant future.

However with less fanfare, scientists from UCLA have been working at their own version of solar storage technology, one based on ancient technology (and meatballs) which may have an even more far reaching effect than battery storage. [Read more…]

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Will Abbott take Spain’s lead and start taxing solar battery storage?

June 15, 2015 2017-10-25T09:35:25 by 19 Comments
tony abbott with wind turbines

Tony Abbott finally admits what we all knew. He despises renewables. What will be his next move? A Spanish style “battery Storage Tax”?

The government’s war on renewables went into overdrive this week. The nation shook its collective head in disbelief as we heard the prime minister say to Alan Jones, notorious shock jock and confirmed anti-renewable energy advocate, that wind energy farms were “visually awful”. [Read more…]

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Time to ignite an African solar power revolution

June 10, 2015 2019-04-15T14:52:27 by 8 Comments

A recent World Energy Outlook report found that over two-thirds of people in Africa live without electricity, a shocking statistic that costs the continent in health; investment, pollution and education opportunities. This lack of energy infrastructure has stalled GDP growth across the continent and underlined the need for an African solar power revolution to fill the energy. [Read more…]

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From flaky to flavour of the month: Big ass power companies embrace solar

June 1, 2015 2017-10-25T09:36:01 by 10 Comments
u turn sign in front of solar power and cooling towers

Utilities that have previously described solar owners as “freeloaders” and being part of a “scam” are now singing solar’s praises.

Has anyone else noticed the changing attitude of utilities to solar power?

Until recently all you could hear in the regular announcements from the fossil fuel companies’ board rooms was that renewable power was “flaky” and dependent on “when the sun shines, when the wind blows…etc”. You know the drill.

Oh but how times change. It’s been almost embarrassing to see former trenchant critics of solar energy, those that have described solar as akin to the devil incarnate of energy production, come charging out of the sheds with new models designed to take advantage of the popularity of solar power in Australia. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Installation Tagged With: ,

Here comes the sun: Saudi oil minister flags end of fossil fuels

May 26, 2015 2017-10-25T09:36:14 by 5 Comments
oil on solar panels

Solar is going to smash the oil industry

When the Saudi oil minister says his country will switch to solar you know the jig is up for fossil fuels. Such a defining moment occurred in Paris this week when Reuters, the Financial Times and The Guardian all reported Minister Ali Al-Naimi as admitting the days of oil exports in his country were limited.

The comments were delivered to attendees of a climate and business conference where Naimi outlined a new direction for Saudi Arabian exports.

“In Saudi Arabia, we recognise that eventually, one of these days, we are not going to need fossil fuels, I don’t know when, in 2040, 2050… so we have embarked on a program to develop solar energy,” Ali Al-Naimi told the conference.

“Hopefully, one of these days, instead of exporting fossil fuels, we will be exporting gigawatts, electric ones,” he added.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Economics Of Solar Tagged With: ,

Did solar energy get a leg up in the budget?

May 20, 2015 2017-10-25T09:36:28 by 3 Comments
solar panels

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…]

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ARENA funds independent testing for battery storage

May 11, 2015 2017-10-25T09:36:41 by 12 Comments
battery icons

Which battery is best for Aussie conditions? ARENA aim to tell you…

Just when you thought the news in battery storage was over following Tesla’s launch of the Powerwall, comes this little news gem.

Renewable energy consulting firm IT Power have been granted $450,000 from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) — remember them? — to conduct special independent tests to confirm the efficiency of eight different types of battery storage. [Read more…]

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