Australia will have more than 50GW of installed solar capacity by 2040, according to a new forecast by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, and more than half of this capacity will […]
Residential solar PV price index – September 2015
Solar system prices fell on average between August and September, but there was significant variation between cities, especially among the smaller system sizes (1.5kW and 2kW). The rise in average […]
Giant Power residential battery storage solutions
Giant Power is a Sunshine Coast-based battery energy storage system wholesaler specialising in grid-connected, ‘hybrid’ solar-plus-battery solutions as well as conventional off-grid systems. The company has been supplying solar panels, […]
Australia one of the most attractive battery storage markets in the world: Kokam CEO
Australia is one of the most attractive markets in the world for battery storage, according to one of the world’s leading battery manufacturers – and not just at the household […]
Sunvertec: An Aussie-made ‘distributed inverter’ designed to rival microinverters & string inverters alike
A Perth-based engineering startup is looking to change the way that Australia – and the world – looks at solar inverters. Sunvertec, which announced itself to the world at the […]
QLD’s distributed rooftop solar ranks in top 10 largest generators in Aus
A new graph has shown that rooftop solar from individual states now ranks among the top generators in Australia. The graph, created by former Energex executive Mike Swanston in response […]
Rooftop solar reduces midday demand by up to 3GW: RMIT study
A new study from researchers from the Melbourne Energy Institute and RMIT in Victoria has highlighted the major role solar PV has played in reducing electricity demand in the last […]
Diamond Energy customers opening their doors for Sustainable House Day 2015
This coming Sunday 13th September is Sustainable House Day. Over 200 leading environmentally friendly homes will open their doors to the public this weekend and welcome thousands of visitors looking […]
Vic Labor to introduce legislation to prevent retailer discrimination against solar homes
Victoria’s Labor government has announced new legislation that will prevent electricity retailers from refusing discounts to households with rooftop solar arrays. Victoria energy minister Lily D’Ambrosio announced the move on […]
SE Queensland network hits 1GW solar – a system on 3 in 10 homes
Nearly three out of every 10 households in south-east Queensland have invested in rooftop solar, sending the total amount of PV installed on the electricity network operated by Energex past […]
Developing countries set the example for ‘energy democracy’
The former chief executive of America’s biggest electricity utility, Duke Energy, says it take distributed energy technologies like solar and storage to bring energy democracy to the world’s developing countries […]
QLD government to give boost to rooftop & large-scale solar
The Queensland Labor government has pledged to help the Sunshine State live up to its name, by boosting development of large-scale solar projects and encouraging the uptake of rooftop solar. […]
Redflow to offer small-scale flow battery in Australia from 2016
ASX-listed battery technology developer Reflow says it will deliver a plug and play version of its unique zinc bromide flow battery for households and small businesses by early 2016. The […]
On Wind Load Reduction: Solar Arrays in the Field and Building Roofs
Solar Choice has recently been in contact with Leighton Cochran, PhD of Brisbane-based MEL Consultants. Dr Cochran has conducted extensive research into wind loading for all types of solar technologies […]
2015-16 NSW benchmark solar panel feed-in tariff rates to drop further: IPART draft report
NSW’s Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) has released a draft of its proposed solar feed-in tariff benchmark range for 2015-16. At 4.4-5.6c/kWh, the rates (which are unlikely to change […]
Solar will meet 100% of WA daytime electricity demand within next decade, says state’s energy minister
Western Australia’s treasurer and energy minister, Mike Nahan, has predicted that solar PV will meet the daytime electricity needs of the state within the next decade, in a speech at […]
ACT’s largest rooftop PV project reaches financial close
Solar Choice has this week reached financial close on an impressive 600kW project pursuant to a long term Roof Access Agreement negotiated with the ACT Government. The site for the […]
‘SunPort’ promises solar energy access to everyone – roof or no roof
Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology has come a long way in the past decade. Once seen as expensive, idealistic and useful only in niche applications, it has now entered the global […]
Brisbane Markets 1.06MW rooftop solar array installation complete (NEW IMAGES)
Installation of the solar arrays for the 1.06MW Brisbane Markets project – begun several months ago – is now complete. As we reported previously, Solar Choice Commercial brokered the winning bid on this iconic […]
Aussie-developed salt-based energy storage solution wins ANSTO Eureka Prize
A low-cost energy storage solution that uses salt to store excess electricity has been awarded one of Australia’s top science gongs, the ANSTO Eureka Prize for Innovative Use of Technology. […]
As feed-in tariffs end and battery prices fall, homes ‘hungry’ for batteries: ARENA CEO
The winding back of state-based solar feed-in tariffs could leave one million-plus Australian solar households “hungry” for energy storage, at the same time as battery costs start to decline, the […]
Solar-plus-battery storage in Brisbane
In some suburbs of the greater Brisbane area, nearly 50% of residential roofs are equipped with solar panels – among the highest rates in the country. Many of these homes […]
Victorian regulator confirms feed-in tariff to be slashed to 5c/kWh
Victoria’s Essential Services Commission has confirmed it will slash the feed-in tariff for solar power exported to the grid to 5c/kWh, starting January 01, 2016. The ESC announced the decision in in […]
Vic government to address barriers to wind farms, distributed solar & storage
Just weeks after the federal government ordered the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to cease backing wind energy and rooftop solar in Australia, Victoria’s state Labor government has committed to drive […]
Commercial Solar PV Price Index: August 2015
This month Solar Choice upgraded its price reporting functionality to encompass a larger number of commercial installers – with interesting results. While average prices now appear as higher for 30kW, 50kW […]
New solar & storage-friendly electricity market rules delayed until 2020
New electricity market rules that could have encouraged Australian networks and consumers to take up solar PV, battery storage and demand management systems have been delayed for another five years. […]
Solar Choice brokers 30kW solar system for Gold Coast Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church
Solar Choice Commercial has brokered a 30kW solar PV system for the Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church on the Gold Coast, Queensland. The church’s congregation exhibited uncommon ambition in their clean […]
WINAICO Solar listed as tier 1 by BNEF
Industry analysts at Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) have classified WINAICO a tier 1 solar module manufacturer in their most recent PV Market Outlook report. Although the listing does not […]
Utility business model is in danger – and Australia is the proverbial ‘canary in the coal mine’
The point when the cost of solar electricity generation falls below that of the cost of the network is the real threat to traditional utilities, a new report has warned. […]
Aus energy markets in midst of ‘seismic shift’ thanks to solar, storage: Shorten
The leader of the Opposition has pushed the case for household solar and battery storage, in a speech at the University of NSW last Friday. Federal Labor leader Bill Shorten […]
Going with the flow: An introduction to redox flow batteries
Renewable energy technologies – solar PV in particular – are on the cusp of changing the energy landscape. In combination with the right load profile and in the right settings, […]
