The Australian arm of German solar giant Conergy has announced it will be building a 2MW solar PV plant in New Caledonia – a project that aims to send a […]
Tag: tony abbott
National Rally for Renewables delivers strong message to MPs across Australia
Renewable Energy Target supporters are turning out for events across Australia today as part of the National Rally for Renewables, a campaign coordinated by pro-renewables groups, peak bodies and industry […]
South Australia, meeting 33% target early, ups state renewable energy target to 50% by 2020
South Australia’s Labor government has boosted its renewable energy target to 50 per cent by 2025, up from the 33 per cent target it has already met, six years ahead […]
Move to ‘net carbon zero’ by 2050 doable, affordable and necessary for Australia and 14 other countries: UN
Fifteen of the world’s biggest economies – including Australia – could move to “net carbon zero” by 2050, according to a major new analysis released on Tuesday. The report – Pathways […]
Labor, Greens & PUP stand up for RET at first Save Solar Community Forum in Sydney
The Australian Solar Council has declared its first Save Solar Community Forum a success, with representatives of Labor, the Greens and the Palmer United Party (PUP) coming together under one […]
Shorten: Abbott must reject Warburton review as prerequisite for deal on RET
In a show of support for Australia’s rooftop solar industry, the leader of the opposition, Bill Shorten, has called on the government to ignore the recommendations of the latest RET […]
Labor affirms support for unaltered RET
The Australian Labor Party has reaffirmed its support for the Renewable Energy Target in its current form, with ALP leader Bill Shorten saying that the RET review panel’s report containing […]
Climate Change Authority chief recommends maintaining RET but extending timeframe
The chairman of the Climate Change Authority has weighed in on the debate over Australia’s Renewable Energy Target, arguing it should be kept at its current level, but extended over […]
Solar Citizens, Solar Council deliver letter from 500+ solar companies to government urging sense on the RET
Representatives from Australia’s solar industry have delivered a letter to the Abbott government calling on it to back jobs and investment in the solar industry by maintaining the 41,000GWh Renewable […]
RET review recommendations would kill commercial solar market if implemented
Australia’s commercial-scale solar market would quickly evaporate if the federal government adopted the policy changes recommended in the RET Review report, industry insiders have warned. Solar PV installers and analysts […]
As solar industry braces for RET review results, solar boom looks imminent
The Australian Solar Council, in preparation for the the announcement of the recommendations of the Renewable Energy Target (RET) review panel, has urged installers across the country to ‘sell solar’ in […]
Aussie renewable energy industry speaks out against PM’s anti-RET intentions
Australia’s renewable energy industry has hit back at reports the Prime Minister is pushing for the Renewable Energy Target to be abolished, warning that this would leave the nation “dead […]
Coalition would need to ‘get the Greens convinced’ in order to abolish RET: Palmer
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 […]
Government still looking to scrap RET rather than ‘compromise’ and weaken it: Financial Review
The Australian Financial Review, in a front-page article on the topic, says that the Prime Minister and his closest cohorts still harbour intentions of scrapping the Renewable Energy Target (RET) […]
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 […]
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 […]
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, […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Sunshine Coast Council shows support for solar in RET Review submission
Queensland’s Sunshine Coast Council has predicted that local governments could lead significant growth in Australia’s utility-scale solar market, developing projects to protect themselves and their ratepayers against rising electricity prices. […]
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 […]
Abengoa feasibility study could pave the way for solar thermal with storage in Australia
Spanish renewable energy giant Abengoa has secured $450,000 in funds from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to conduct a feasibility study into building a 20MW solar thermal tower plant with […]
Construction begins on Australia’s first concentrating solar plant with storage
Construction of Australia’s first stand-alone concentrated solar thermal power station with integrated storage is underway in NSW, with a project that promises to deliver electricity on demand, for around the […]
AGL’s submission to RET review urges incentive reductions
Leading Australian utility AGL Energy has been accused of joining the electricity sector “dark side” after it called for the small-scale component of the Renewable Energy Target, currently under review […]
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 […]
Government intentions to dilute the RET becoming clearer
The government’s intention to dilute the strength of the country’s Renewable Energy Target (RET) has become clearer, with Prime Minister Abbott accusing the scheme of ‘causing pretty significant price pressures’ […]
Federal government moves to slash ARENA funding
Renewable energy advocates have spoken out agains the Coalition’s previously foreshadowed move to reduce funding to the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), introduced as a provision in the government’s draft […]
Among Coalition’s changes to renewable support schemes, an ARENA budget cut for the 1m solar homes program
The Coalition, as largely anticipated, has come to power following the 7 September election, riding a wave of anti-Labour sentiment. Everyone involved in renewables or with an interest in renewable […]
