New research has shown that the fast-growing Australian solar industry is both creating jobs and pushing down electricity prices, despite claims to the contrary from power networks and the fossil […]
ConnectDER: A new device to open Pandora’s Box for grid connection
Virginia start-up ‘Infinite Invention’ have created a device which potentially allows for the modulation of exported solar PV electricity to suit surrounding grid conditions. The device also provides a quick […]
Colorado net metering fight reveals shifting utility attitudes towards solar
US solar advocacy group the Alliance for Solar Choice (TASC), in pointing out position reversal on the part of a Colorado utility towards solar net metering policy, has highlighted the ongoing […]
Solar PV market could go the way of solar hot water if RET is weakened
Australia’s rooftop solar PV market risked following in the disastrous path of the solar hot water market if changes were made to the Renewable Energy Target, industry has warned. Estimates […]
NSW to become a leader in medium-scale solar PV under new state policies
The NSW government has unveiled a new policy that could help “transform mid-scale solar” energy in Australia. The state’s environment minister, Rob Stokes, said the new resource efficiency policy would […]
Utility-scale solar in Australia: Long-term certainty counters short-term doubt
Large-scale solar power in Australia was one of the main topics of conversation on Thursday at the Clean Energy Week conference in Sydney, with the day’s speakers expressing the range of […]
Perovskites: The next PV revolution?
Perovskites have taken the PV research world by storm in recent years thanks to unprecedented growth in efficiency in the material. Perovskite solar cell efficiencies have gone from a barely […]
NSW government proclaims support for renewables & the RET, breaking ranks with fellow Lib-Nats
Breaking ranks with the their fellow Lib-Nat party members on the federal level, the NSW government has declared its aim of ensuring that NSW is fertile territory for renewable energy […]
Siva Power aims to produce lowest cost PV modules at 28¢/W
Siva Power has announced plans to produce thin-film CIGS solar modules at a cost of US$0.28 per watt by around 2018. This figure represents the lowest manufacturing cost of any […]
Indian village leads the way in rural electrification with solar-powered micro-grid
A small village in one of India’s poorest states has becomes the nation’s first to meet 100 per cent of its own energy needs using off-grid solar power. Dharnai village […]
Renewables account for over half of new US electricity capacity in first half of 2014
Renewable energy sources, namely solar and wind, have provided more than half of all new electricity generating capacity in the US in the first half 2014, a new report has […]
Solar Choice Commercial brokers 20kW solar system for Marrickville Council chambers
The rooftop of the administration building of Marrickville Council is now equipped with 20kW worth of solar panels, with Solar Choice Commercial acting as tender manager for the project. The array, […]
Commercial PV Price Index – July 2014
Solar Choice’s Commercial PV Price Index is published monthly to act as a bellwether for commercial-scale solar PV system pricing trends across Australia. Systems of 10kW, 30kW, 50kW and 100kW in […]
IMEC sets new efficiency record with industrially sized n-type solar cell
IMEC, a Belgian institute renowned for microelectronics research, have produced an industrially‑sized 21.5% efficient n‑type solar cell. This result represents the highest efficiency achieved for cells of its kind and […]
Could solar homes & businesses face fallout from carbon tax repeal?
The Australian Greens have raised concerns that the Abbott government’s scrapping of the carbon pricing scheme will have serious repercussion for Australian households and small businesses with rooftop solar. The […]
15-20% of Australian solar customers interested in energy storage
Installation rates of battery storage systems in Australian homes could reach around 1,000 a year by the end of 2014, according to new estimates, as solar households look for ways […]
Ammonia corrosion resistance standards for solar panels
Not every solar PV system owner need be concerned about whether their panels can withstand extended exposure to ammonia; for most, the issue would not be a consideration. But for […]
Victorian electricity retailer set to hit solar system owners with additional fees
Victoria looks set to become the first Australian state to hit solar households with an additional fixed charge on their electricity bills, according to a proposal that has recently come […]
Fronius offering 10 year warranty on inverters until end of 2014
Fronius Australia is offering free extended warranties on its inverters until the end of the year, according to a recent press release from the company. Those who have a solar […]
Renewable energy investment reached $63.6b in Q2 2014: BNEF
A record-breaking $3.8 billion deal to finance an offshore wind farm in the North Sea has helped to deliver the strongest quarter for clean energy investment in two years. Global […]
15,000 new Australian households going solar monthly, with Queensland leading the way
Australians continue to install rooftop solar at a rate of more than 15,000 households a month, according to new data from Green Energy Trading, adding peak capacity of 64.8MW in […]
Shoalhaven River Retreat centre’s solar arrays still going strong 4 years on
Solar panels at a retreat centre in the Shoalhaven area are still going strong after 4 years of operation. The property where the installation lives, named Oallen, sits near the […]
Echoing Australia, Florida and Utah utilities working to undermine solar growth
Echoing the conflicts currently underway in Australia, utilities in the American states of Florida and Utah are making efforts to slow down the progress of burgeoning solar industries there. In […]
‘Two-for-one’ deal on electrons to boost solar cell efficiency
Research conducted by the University of California (UC) – Riverside proposes an innovative method for pushing commercial solar cell efficiencies past 30%. The process, known as ‘singlet fission’, allows for […]
Portable personalised power for a mobile generation
Generating enough off-grid electricity to power our most used electronics devices may be easier than we think, thanks to recent innovations such as the ‘Solartab’ and ‘Solargami’ portable solar PV […]
Decarbonising Australian electricity sector would require reaching 100% renewables by 2050
Australia would need to switch to 100 per cent renewable electricity generation by 2050 in order to achieve the kind of rapid decarbonisation required to meet its global climate obligations, […]
Inefficient pricing, not renewables, to blame for Australian electricity cost pain: Grattan Institute
The situation in Australia’s electricity sector have come to what might be described as perfect storm conditions for leaving the grid, and unfair & inefficient pricing mechanisms are largely to blame, […]
Renewables provided 30% of Germany’s electricity in first 6 months of 2014
Record amounts of solar and wind energy generation in Germany have helped push the country’s share of renewables to 31 per cent of electricity production for the first half of […]
Solar will dominate new generation capacity buildout to 2030: BNEF
Solar looks set to dominate new electricity capacity and investment in Australia, with a new report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance predicting solar PV will account for nearly half of […]
Retirement savings at risk if RET is slashed: IGCC
The Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC) has advised the panel tasked with reviewing Australia’s Renewable Energy Target (RET) that the superannuation funds of millions of Australians are at risk […]
Sunpower and KB Homes partnership offers PV with battery storage
Sunpower is offering fully integrated solar PV and battery storage solutions for new energy efficient homes in Southern California, in partnership with US home builder KB Homes. The pilot program initially aims […]
