In an encouraging sign that he will not be backing down (or backflipping) on his promise to support the Renewable Energy Target (RET), Clive Palmer has sarcastically commented that the Coalition will […]
Category: Renewable Energy Target for Solar Panel Systems
Solar Choice articles about the federal government’s Renewable Energy Target and associated solar PV incentives.
RET report delayed as review panel asks for extension; renewables industry continues to hold its breath
The panel tasked with reviewing the Renewable Energy Target (RET) has requested an extension to complete its final report, according to the Australian Financial Review. The report, which was originally […]
Solar employs more people than coal industry, and keeps electricity prices down: Australia Institute
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Australian Solar Council and Solar Citizens slam government on plans to scrap ARENA
Australia’s Solar Council has launched a campaign to save the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, warning the federal government that dumping it would damage the solar industry and put Australia well […]
Abbott says RET driving up power prices, while solar appears to sink market electricity price in QLD
Are clean energy schemes driving up the price of electricity? In the case of the carbon tax, the answer seems pretty clearly to be ‘yes’–that’s what it was intended to do, initially […]
First Solar says utility-scale solar price will halve by 2019–if RET remains intact
The cost of utility-scale solar in Australia will halve over the next five years, making it cheaper than wind energy by 2020, according to predictions from one of the world’s […]
FRV suggests energy storage ‘multiplier’ incentive to encourage renewables, reduce peak demand
Spanish renewables group, FRV, has suggested the introduction of a form of banding, or a “multiplier,” to encourage the development of energy storage. FRV suggests a multiplier could be applied […]
ACIL Allen’s RET modelling shows homes & businesses could install 14GW+ of solar by 2040
Australian households will likely invest $30 billion in rooftop solar in the coming decades, assuming the major share of investment in the country’s transition to clean energy. Modelling conducted by consulting […]
Palmer’s backing of the RET ensures scheme’s survival, but cuts still likely
After several oscillations, Clive Palmer has suddenly (and apparently wholeheartedly) thrown his party’s backing behind Australia’s embattled Renewable Energy Target, currently the nation’s most important remaining support scheme for renewables. […]
ACIL Allen report on Renewable Energy Target bodes ill for Australian solar industry
The Australian solar industry is in grave fear about its future, following the release of various scenarios from ACIL Allen, the company doing the modeling for the Abbott government’s review […]
Australia in danger of becoming a renewable energy ‘laggard’ globally if RET is cut
The world’s largest solar manufacturer, Yingli Green Energy, has warned Australia that the maintenance of the Renewable Energy Target is crucial for the ongoing business and future stability of the […]
Renewable energy policy uncertainty holding Australia back in global solar boom
Renewable energy policy uncertainty threatens to put Australia even further behind the global solar pace, according to the comments from within two of the booming industry’s biggest players. In an […]
NSW government backs RET but recommends substantial changes
The NSW government has fallen short of calling for Australia’s Renewable Energy Target be scrapped, instead recommending significant changes to the legislation, including delaying its large-scale component, and clamping rooftop […]
RET cuts would result in increased power bills for consumers, windfall profits for coal generators: BNEF
A new report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance suggests that scrapping or winding back Australia’s Renewable Energy Target would simply result in increased utility bills, and a multi-billion dollar windfall […]
Government attacks Australian solar SMEs
The Murdoch Press are clearly well aligned with our Government’s transparent desire to destroy the renewable energy industry in Australia. Spouting the alarmist headline “Solar panels are time bombs”, the […]
What would a solar system cost without the Renewable Energy Target?
“Is the Renewable Energy Target going to survive this review in reasonably good shape?” There are only so many times you can shake the Magic 8 Ball to try to […]
Australia’s small-scale solar plants’ contribution now equivalent to 1GW coal plant: Clean Energy Regulator
A new report by Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator has revealed that the nation’s total combined rooftop PV and solar hot water systems can generate enough renewable energy to displace the […]
Solar Council fears the RET review could end incentives for small-scale solar
The Australian Solar Council fears that the entire government rebate for small scale rooftop systems could be removed by the Abbott government’s renewable energy scheme review. John Grimes, the chief […]
Expose into Australian power prices
Australia’s ABC radio recently conducted a detailed research story into who is really to blame for the rising price of power in Australia. The background for the story is the […]
ICCP reports: scale up renewable energy for decarbonisation
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has said that renewable energy sources such as wind and solar must lie at the core of a massive decarbonisation of the world’s […]
Solar Council’s ‘Save Solar’ campaign goes full bore in WA
The Australian Solar Council‘s campaign to keep the country’s Renewable Energy Target (RET) and its incentives for small-scale solar intact is now in full swing in Western Australia, with a […]
Could Palmer United Party support for renewables save the RET?
Update: Clive Palmer has contradicted his WA PUP senate candidate Dio Wang, saying the RET should not be mandatory. It is unclear what his party’s official stance on renewables is. […]
Uncertainty over future of renewable energy support mechanisms driving investors away from Australia
Australia is in danger of losing investors in clean energy options such as solar and wind energy, and in carbon abatement, because of the uncertainty around environmental legislation. Several key […]
Battle for the RET begins in WA as Solar Council ramps up campaign
The Australian Solar Council will in the coming days unleash a massive ad campaign in Western Australia, where one of the key issues in the upcoming 5 April senate election […]
Big changes ahead for Australian solar
2014 will be a watershed year for the Australian solar industry, and consumers will feel the impacts one way or another. The fate of Australian companies who participate in this […]
Climate Change Authority throws what weight it has behind the RET
Like the Carbon Tax, the fate of the Climate Change Authority (CCA) is more or less sealed, with the federal government having vowed to dismantle it once it gains control […]
39% of Australians think Renewable Energy Target is ‘about right’, 25% ‘too low’ according to poll
The federal government’s ire towards Australia’s Renewable Energy Target (RET) appears to be seriously out of proportion with public sentiment regarding the incentive scheme, if the results of an Essential […]
