News and Info
Rooftop solar is eating coal and gas markets in every mainland state
The fundamentals of the Australian electricity market has been turned on its head: Not by climate targets, or the increase in large scale wind and solar, but by the huge amounts of rooftop solar PV put on the roofs of homes and businesses across the country. The uptake of rooftop solar means that peak demand is not the only issue confronting the Australian Energy Market Operator and regulators, it is the growing impact of minimum demand – when rooftop solar soaks up an increasing amount of the market once reserved for coal and gas generators. On Monday, we noted that rooftop solar had taken a bigger bite out of the Christmas lunch of Victoria’s brown coal generators, sending that state to a new minimum demand level – less than half the capacity of the remaining coal plants. Read More: https://reneweconomy.com.au/rooftop-solar-is-eating-coal-and-gas-markets-in-every-mainland-state/
Three pathways a smarter energy system
As Australia’s energy transition accelerates, a new generation of digital solutions are needed to coordinate an increasingly decarbonised, decentralised and democratised electricity network. Dr John McKibbin leads CSIRO’s research in energy systems digitalisation. He...
Australia ‘vulnerable’ to power bill shocks until we break gas habit
Power bill shocks will remain a threat unless Australia quickly “decouples” from global coal and gas markets by ramping up renewables, the head of the east coast electricity grid has warned. Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) chief executive Daniel Westerman...
The Era of Responsibility – Top ESG Trends for 2022
Environmental, Social and Governance issues continue to create a paradigm shift in the way businesses are run. 2022 looks to be another big year in the space, with those slow to adapt left behind. Earlier this year, we looked at the global ESG themes...
Australia hits massive global solar milestone
Australia has reached a significant solar milestone with 25GW of solar now installed nationwide, and the country now boasting the most solar per capita in the world – according to new research from the Australian Photovoltaics Institute (APVI). Australia remains in...
$6 million for EV fast-charging infrastructure
The Federal Government has announced over $6 million to support electric vehicle (EV) fast charging infrastructure in a partnership with an Australian charging company. With a comprehensive fast charging network integral to boost mainstream interest in EVs, the new...
How high do petrol prices need to go to make electric cars more affordable?
Record fuel prices would need to double again before electric vehicles were more affordable than conventional alternatives, according to an industry body. Petrol prices have been nudging $2 a litre across Australia's major cities as fears of war between Ukraine and...
Coal plant closure shows Australia at forefront of global clean energy experiment
Australia is at the forefront of a global experiment on how to shift an electricity grid built on coal to one dominated by renewables. The transition to clean energy is gaining pace as Australia’s abundant wind and solar resources pump more and more cheap power into...
Australia switches on Victoria Big Battery powered by Tesla Megapacks
Australia turned on its biggest battery, powered by Tesla Megapacks, on Wednesday in hopes of avoiding blackouts, and making greater use of renewable energy. One of the world’s largest battery-based energy storage systems, powered by Tesla’s utility-scale Megapack...
EY: Creating business value from sustainability and ESG
Steve Varley, EY Global Vice Chair – Sustainability, talks exclusively to us about creating business value from sustainability and ESG Sustainability. It’s the mantra of the moment when it comes to business success – an essential area of focus for any organisation...
Australia’s battery capacity set to double within months
Australia’s battery capacity will double this year as major projects come online, heightening pressure on the country’s fossil fuel power generators that are struggling to compete against soaring renewable energy generation. Battery capacity in Australia during 2021...