Solar power in Australia

White Cliffs Solar Power Station, New South Wales

Solar power in Australia is a relatively recent phenomenon. Currently, it has over 4,100 megawatts (MW) of installed photovoltaic (PV) solar power (March 2015),^[1] and 760 MW of PV was installed in the preceding 12 months. At a capacity factor of 14 percent, this would contribute 1.1 percent of Australia's electrical energy. The amount of installed PV capacity in Australia has increased 10-fold between 2009 and 2011. Feed-in tariffs and mandatory renewable energy targets designed to assist renewable energy commercialisation in Australia have largely been responsible for the rapid increase.

In South Australia, Premier Mike Rann introduced a solar feed in tariff for households and an educational program that involved installing photovoltaics on the roofs of major public buildings such as the Adelaide Airport, State Parliament, Museum, Art Gallery and several hundred public schools.^[2] In 2008 Premier Rann announced funding for $8 million worth of solar panels on the roof of the new Goyder Pavilion at the Royal Adelaide Showgrounds, the largest roof top solar installation in Australia, qualifying it for official "power station" status.^[3] South Australia has the highest per capita take up of household solar power in Australia.

The first commercial-scale PV power plant was opened in 2011, the Uterne Solar Power Station, a 1 MW capacity grid-connected solar photovoltaic system located 5 km south of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.^[4] The second opened in 2012 at Greenough River Solar Farm with a capacity of 10 MW.^[5] The price of photovoltaics has been decreasing, and in January 2013, was less than half the cost of using grid electricity in Australia.^[6]

The country has been criticised for producing very little of its energy from solar power, despite its vast resources, extensive sunshine and thus high potential.^{[7][8][9][10]}

Potential

Solar potential in Australia

The combination of Australia's dry climate and latitude give it a high benefits and potential for solar energy production. Most of the Australian continent receives in excess of 4 kWh per square metre per day of insolation during winter months, with a region in the north exceeding 6 kWh/day.

Australia's insolation greatly exceeds the average values in Europe, Russia, and most of North America. Comparable levels are found in desert areas of northern and southern Africa, south western United States and adjacent area of Mexico, and regions on the Pacific coast of South America. However, the areas of highest insolation are distant to the country's population centres.

With an installed photovoltaic capacity of 3,300 megawatts by the end of 2013, Australia ranks among the world's top ten solar countries.

There is considerable academic and commercial interest in a new form of Concentrated Solar Power, called STEM, for off-grid applications to produce 24-hour industrial scale power for remote communities and mining sites. STEM uses fluidized silica sand as a thermal storage and heat transfer medium for CSP systems. It has been developed by Italy's Magaldi Industries. The first commercial application of STEM will take place in Sicily in late 2015.^[11]

Incentives

Source: Australian PV Institute (reported year-end capacity in GW, rounded)[12]

Rebates

The Australian Government provided a rebate program that offered up to A$8,000 rebates for installing solar panels on homes and community use buildings (other than schools), through the Solar Homes and Communities Plan.^[13] However, on 8 June 2009, this program was phased out, to be replaced by the Solar Credits Program, where an installation of a solar system would receive 5 times as many Renewable Energy Certificates for the first 1.5 kilowatts of capacity under the Renewable Energy Target (see below)^[14]

Schools were eligible to apply for grants of up to A$50,000 to install 2 kW solar panels and other measures through the National Solar Schools Program beginning 1 July 2008, which replaced the Green Vouchers for Schools program.^[15] Applications for the program ended 21 November 2012. A total of 2,870 schools have installed solar panels.^[16] The output of each array can be viewed, and compared with that of up to four other schools.^[17]

Feed-in tariffs

Feed in tariffs were introduced by a number of states to increase the amount of solar PV power generated. They can be classified by a number of factors including the price paid, whether it is on a net or gross export basis, the length of time payments are guaranteed, the maximum size of installation allowed and the type of customer allowed to participate. Many Australian state feed-in tariffs were net export tariffs, whereas conservation groups argued for gross feed-in tariffs. In March 2009, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) started a solar gross feed-in tariff. For systems up to 10 kW the payment was 50.05 cents per kWh. For systems from 10 kW to 30 kW the payment was 40.04 cents per kWh. The payment was revised downward once before an overall capacity cap was reached and the scheme closed. Payments are made quarterly based on energy generated and the payment rate is guaranteed for 20 years.^[18][19] In Germany, a guaranteed PV tariff means that Germany now has the highest PV capacity per capita – at 10 W for every person in Germany compared to Australia at 2.6 W per capita.^[20]

Mandatory renewable energy target

The Federal Government MRET will ensure renewable energy obtains a 20% share of electricity supply in Australia by 2020. The MRET will increase from 9,500 gigawatt-hours to 45,000 gigawatt-hours by 2020. The scheme lasts until 2030.^[21]

The MRET requires wholesale purchasers of electricity (such as electricity retailers or industrial operations) to purchase Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), created through the generation of electricity from renewable sources. These sources include Wind, Hydro, Landfill Gas and Geothermal, as well as Solar PV and Solar Thermal, providing a stimulus and additional revenue for these technologies.

Subsidy funding

The Solar Flagships program sets aside $1.6 billion for solar power over a period of six years.^[22] The government funding is for 4 new solar plants that produce coal plant scale power (in total up to 1000 MW - coal plants typically produce 500 to 2,000 MW). This subsidy would need additional funding from the plant builders and/or operators. As a comparison Abengoa Solar, a company currently constructing solar thermal plants, put the cost of a 300 MW plant at 1.2 billion euros in 2007. In 2009, the Arizona state government announced a 200 MW plant for 1 billion US dollars.^[23][24]

Projects

Status by state

The list of solar power projects below is not complete as there are many more sites that have solar power or hybrid solar/wind systems to generate their own power needs. Projects with a power rating less than 30 kW are not listed.

State	Project/Location	Coordinates	Capacity kW	Status	LGA	Company	Notes
NSW	Nyngan Solar Plant	31°33′23″S 147°04′53″E / 31.5563°S 147.08152°E	102,000	2015 - Fully commissioned in June. Commissioned in stages.	Bogan Shire	AGL Energy	CdTe thin-film technology. Is the largest solar PV plant in the Southern Hemisphere. Capacity: 102 MWAC.[25][26][27][28]
NSW	Moree Solar Farm	29°33′58″S 149°50′55″E / 29.56621°S 149.84853°E	56,000	Full power achieved March 2016.	Moree Plains Shire	Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV)	Photovoltaic, single axis tracking.[29]
NSW	Broken Hill Solar Plant	31°59′19″S 141°23′05″E / 31.98871°S 141.3846°E	53,000	2014 - Commissioned July. Full power output achieved on 14 October 2015.	Broken Hill	AGL Energy	CdTe thin-film technology. Capacity given in AC (53 MWAC).[30]
QLD	Kogan Creek Solar Boost Project	26°54′00″S 150°43′59″E / 26.90°S 150.733°E	44,000	2011 - Under Construction December		CS Energy	Solar thermal[31]
ACT	Royalla solar farm	35°29′24″S 149°08′42″E / 35.490°S 149.145°E	20,000	2014 - Commissioned September	Canberra	Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV)	Photovoltaic[32]
QLD	Valdora Solar Farm	26°33′35″S 153°01′32″E / 26.5596°S 153.0256°E	15,000	2015 - Council DA Approval required early 2015. Tender due in first quarter 2015.[33]	Sunshine Coast	(Tender)	Photovoltaic [34]
ACT	Mugga Lane Solar Park	35°23′56″S 149°08′49″E / 35.39898°S 149.14687°E	13,000	Awarded feed-in tariff via ACT reverse auction. Expected completion 2016.	Canberra	Zhenfa	Photovoltaic[35]
WA	Greenough River Solar Farm	28°53′20″S 115°07′05″E / 28.889°S 115.118°E	10,000	2012 - Commissioned October[5][36]	City of Greater Geraldton	Verve Energy and GE Financial Services	Photovoltaic
NT	Uterne Solar Power Station, Alice Springs	23°46′06″S 133°52′05″E / 23.768382°S 133.868033°E	4,100	2011 - Commissioned 2011 (1000) 2015 - added 3100		SunPower Corporation / Power and Water Corporation / Epuron	Photovoltaic[4][37]
NT	Darwin International Airport		4,000	2016 - To be commissioned in March	City of Darwin	CAT Projects / Coronium	Q-CELL photovoltaic panels[38]
SA	Jamestown Wastewater Treatment Plant	33°12'17.82"S 138°34'45.07"E	3,500	2015 - Commissioned April	Northern Areas	Infratech Industries	Floating, tracking photovolatic[39]
SA	Tonsley		3,000	2014 - Announced		Zen Energy	Photovoltaic[40]
NSW	Lake Cargelligo Solar Thermal Power Station	33°18′37″S 146°24′37″E / 33.31015°S 146.41024°E	3,000	2011	Lachlan Shire	Graphite Energy / Solastor	Concentrating solar thermal, graphite block technologyc[41][42][43]
QLD	Weipa bauxite mine	12°38'51.92"S 141°51'32.47"E	1,700	2015 - Commissioned (1.7 MW), opportunity to expand to 6.7 WM with storage		Rio Tinto Group, First Solar	Photovoltaic[44]
SA	Sundrop Farms	32°33'5.91"S 137°50'36.34"E	1,500	2015 - Under construction October	Port Augusta	Sundrop Farms	Concentrated solar thermal
NT	Casuarina Square	12°22'29.67"S 130°52'53.60"E	1,250	2015 - Practical completion	City of Darwin	GPT Group	Photovoltaic[45]
QLD	University of Queensland St Lucia campus	27°29′52″S 153°00′46″E / 27.4978°S 153.0128°E	1,220	2011 - Completed July		Ingenero, Trina Solar, RedFlow	Photovoltaic[46][47]
SA	Adelaide Showgrounds	34°56′43″S 138°35′12″E / 34.945355°S 138.586626°E	1,000	2009 - Completed		Built Environs and Solar Shop Australia[48]	Photovoltaic[49][50]
NSW	Liddell Power Station[51]	32°22′29″S 150°58′44″E / 32.374851°S 150.979013°E	1,000	Complete		Solar Heat and Power / Macquarie Generation	Solar thermal
NSW	IKEA Tempe	33°55'21.54"S 151° 9'54.39"E	990	2014 - Commissioned	Marrickville	Kingspan Solar, Yingli, SMA	Photovoltaic[52]
VIC	IKEA Springvale	37°55'36.54"S 145° 8'38.10"E	950	2014 - Commissioned			Photovoltaic[53]
QLD	IKEA Logan	27°38'16.60"S 153° 8'7.23"E	741	2014 - Commissioned			Photovoltaic[53]
VIC	IKEA Richmond	37°48'44.39"S 145° 0'40.36"E	721	2014 - Commissioned			Photovoltaic[53]
VIC	Bridgewater Solar Plant, Bridgewater, Victoria	36°35′S 143°55′E / 36.59°S 143.91°E	500	2010 - Commissioned	Shire of Loddon	Silex Systems Ltd	Australia's largest concentrator photovoltaics (CPV) solar power station[54]
VIC	Toyota Altona North	37°49′48″S 144°49′44″E / 37.83°S 144.829°E	500	2013-2014 Commissioned	Melbourne	Autonomous Energy	Largest rooftop system in Victoria[55]
SA	KJM Contractors	34°44'2.68"S 138°37'39.08"E	495	2013 - Commissioned	City of Playford	Ingenero, Clenergy	Photovoltaic[56]
NSW	Singleton Solar Farm	32°35′28″S 151°10′37″E / 32.591°S 151.177°E	407	1998 - Commissioned		Built By Energy Australia Sold to XYZ Solar Pty Ltd in June 2014	Photovoltaic Polycrystalline 60W panels 200 kW ThinFilm 60W panels 207 kW Tweets: @singletonsolar
NT	Kalkarindji		402	2011 - Commissioned[57]		Epuron	Photovoltaic,[58] part of 3-site TKLN Power project[57]
QLD	Fraser Coast Solar Farm	25°20′35″S 152°50′31″E / 25.343°S 152.842°E	401	2012 - Commissioned November		Ingenero	Photovoltaic, 1,630x 250W Suntech monocrystalline
VIC	NextDC M1 Data Centre, Port Melbourne, Victoria		401	2013 - Completed December		Energy Matters	Will be Australia's largest privately owned rooftop photovoltaic solar system[59]
SA	Ware Products P/L	34°32'5.57"S 138°45'9.87"E	334	2013 - Commissioned	Light Regional Council	Class A Energy Solutions	Photovoltaic[60]
NT	Ti Tree	22° 7'26.69"S 133°24'51.68"E	324[61]	2011 - Commissioned[57]		Epuron	Photovoltaic, part of 3-site TKLN Power project[57]
NT	Crowne Plaza Alice Springs	23°43′09″S 133°52′39″E / 23.719060°S 133.877619°E	305	2009 - Commissioned		SunPower / CAT Projects	Photovoltaic[62]
WA	Marble Bar	21° 9'52.02"S 119°44'27.96"E	304[63]	2011	Pilbara	SunPower, Horizon Power, SMA[63]	Single-axis tracking photovoltaic[64][65]
VIC	Ballarat Solar Park. Ballarat Aerodrome. Mitchell Park, Ballarat.	37°30′S 143°48′E / 37.50°S 143.80°E	300	2009 - Commissioned	Ballarat	Origin Energy / Sharp Corporation	Photovoltaic. Victoria's first ground mounted, flat plate and grid-connected solar farm[66][67]
WA	Solar Farm Carnarvon		300	2011	Carnarvon	Energy Made Clean	First PPA Solar farm in WA with Horizon Power
VIC	Bendigo Solar Park.	36°45′S 144°15′E / 36.75°S 144.25°E	300	2009 - Commissioned	Bendigo	Origin Energy / Sharp Corporation	Photovoltaic. Victoria's first ground mounted, flat plate and grid-connected solar farm[66][67]
NT	Lajamanu	18°20′17″S 130°37′59″E / 18.338°S 130.633°E	288	2005 - Commissioned		Solar Systems	Photovoltaic
NSW	Australia Post, Sydney	33°31′57″S 151°07′19″E / 33.53248°S 151.12185°E	283	2014 - Commissioned		Photon Energy	One of Australia's largest rooftop PV installation. Part of a general refurbishment of Australia Post's Sydney HQ.[68]
NT	Alpurrurulam (Lake Nash)		266[69]	2011 - Commissioned[70]		Epuron	Part of 3-site TKLN Power project[57]
NT	Kings Canyon Solar Power Station	24°15′00″S 131°34′12″E / 24.250°S 131.570°E	241	2003 - Commissioned		NT PowerWater	Photovoltaic
NT	Alice Springs Airport	23°47′45″S 133°53′47″E / 23.795840°S 133.896518°E	235	2010 - Commissioned 4 November		Ingenero / CAT Projects	Concentrated photovoltaics[71][72]
SA	Living Choice	34°57'28.49"S 138°37'7.37"E	230	2014 - Commissioned August		Solar Depot Commercial	Photovoltaic[73]
NSW	Ace Gutters	33°57′36″S 151°04′05″E / 33.96°S 151.068°E	225	2013 Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	Specifically designed mounting structures due to unique wind loading factors[74]
WA	Nullagine	21°52'47.34"S 120° 6'42.25"E	203[75]	2011	Pilbara	SunPower, Horizon Power, PowerCorp, SMA[75]	Single-axis tracking photovoltaic[64]
QLD	Queensland University of Technology (QUT)	27°28′41″S 153°01′44″E / 27.478°S 153.029°E	202	2012 - Completed November	Brisbane	Ingenero	Photovoltaic, 250W Suntech and 328W SunPower polycrystalline
NT	Desert Knowledge Australia Solar Centre, Alice Springs	23°45′43″S 133°52′30″E / 23.761852°S 133.874996°E	201	2008 - Commissioned		Desert Knowledge Australia / CAT Projects	Various photovoltaic[76][77]
ACT	Faulding B		200[78]	2016 - Commissioned	Symonston	Photon Energy	Rooftop power plant[79]
VIC	Queen Victoria Market	37°48′25″S 144°57′36″E / 37.807°S 144.960°E	200	2003 - Commissioned		Melbourne City Council	Photovoltaic
SA	Adelaide Aqua – Adelaide Desalination Plant	35° 5'48.57"S 138°29'2.68"E	200	2011 - Commissioned		SA Water / Adelaide Aqua Consortium	Photovoltaic[80]
SA	D'Arenberg Winery	35°11'43.81"S 138°33'9.86"E	200	2013 - Commissioned	Onkaparinga	The Solar Project, Hanwha Q Cells	Photovoltaic[81]
NSW	Johnson & Johnson Medical	33°45′S 151°01′E / 33.75°S 151.01°E	200	2010 - Commissioned September		Energy Matters	Photovoltaic
NSW	Blacktown Workers and Sports Clubs	33°46′12″S 150°54′29″E / 33.77°S 150.908°E 33°47′24″S 150°53′46″E / 33.79°S 150.896°E	200	2012-2013 Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	Nomination and collection of Clean Energy Week Award 2013 "Best Grid-Connected Solar PV Power System Design and Installation Award" (15 kW - 100 kW category)[82][83][84]
QLD	Bundaberg Christian College	24.8685° S, 152.4060° E	197	2016 Commissioned	Bundaberg	GEM Energy Australia	Photovoltaic, 740x Q CELLS Q.PRO G4 modules, 400kWh Hitachi AVRLA with Nano-Carbon Technology batteries.
SA	Torresan Estate	35°12'35.98"S 138°31'3.98"E	193	2014 - Commissioned	Onkaparinga		Photovoltaic[85]
NT	Yuendumu	22°15′29″S 131°47′49″E / 22.258°S 131.797°E	192	2005 - Commissioned		Solar Systems	Photovoltaic
NT	Hermannsburg	23°55′59″S 132°46′01″E / 23.933°S 132.767°E	192	2005 - Commissioned		Solar Systems	Photovoltaic
NSW	Sydney Markets Limited	33°51′36″S 151°04′08″E / 33.86°S 151.069°E	170	2014 - Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	Pioneering the construction of solar car ports in Australia.[86] Finalist nomination for 2014 Clean Energy Week Awards in the over 100 kW category[87]
NT	Araluen Arts Centre	23°42′04″S 133°51′43″E / 23.701°S 133.862°E	162	2012 - Completed		Ingenero	Photovoltaic, 648x Q-Cells monocrystalline
SA	Seppeltsfield Wines	34°29'23.67"S 138°55'15.29"E	160	2014 - Commissioned			Photovoltaic[88]
NSW	Southern Cross Care	31°58′12″S 141°27′43″E / 31.97°S 141.462°E	150	2012 - Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	Large system to provide power needs for aged care facility[89]
SA	Morphett Vale Medical Centre	35° 6'20.53"S 138°31'32.07"E	150	2014 - Commissioned	Onkaparinga	Todae Solar, Thoroughtec P/L	Photovoltaic[90]
WA	Australian Wool Testing Authority	32°06′01″S 115°48′22″E / 32.100314°S 115.806208°E	150	2013 - Commissioned	City of Cockburn Perth	Infinite Energy	Photovoltaic 625 x 240W Conergy Power Plus polycrystalline
QLD	Windorah Solar Farm	26°24′50″S 142°39′38″E / 26.4139°S 142.6606°E	150	2008 - Completed October		Ergon Energy, Solar Systems	Photovoltaic[91]
ACT	Faulding A		148[92]	2016 - Commissioned	Symonston	Photon Energy	Rooftop power plant[93]
NSW	Pymble Ladies' College	33°46′48″S 151°08′02″E / 33.78°S 151.134°E	145	2012-2014 Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	3 stage implementation 145 kW photovoltaic modules, another leading private school[94]
ACT	Symonston		144[95]	2012 - Commissioned		Photon Energy	Rooftop power plant[96]
ACT	Fyshwick		140[97]	2012 - Commissioned		Photon Energy	Rooftop power plant[98]
SA	Adelaide Showgrounds - Ridley Centre	34°56'44.92"S 138°35'19.40"E	140			Built Environs and Solar Shop Australia	Photovoltaic, thin film[99]
NSW	Sydney Corporate Park, Alexandria	33°54′36″S 151°11′31″E / 33.91°S 151.192°E	120	2013 Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	Custom designed steel frames[100]
NSW	Methodist Ladies' College	33°52′12″S 151°06′04″E / 33.87°S 151.101°E	113	2013-2014 Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	2 stage implementation of photovoltaic modules, another leading private school[101]
NSW	Newington College	33°53′24″S 151°09′43″E / 33.89°S 151.162°E	108	2014 - Commissioned	Sydney	Autonomous Energy	Leading private school adopting solar photovoltaics[102]
SA	Wilpena Pound	31°34′12″S 138°34′48″E / 31.570°S 138.580°E	100	1998 - Commenced		AGL Energy	Photovoltaic[103]
QLD	Coorparoo DC	27°18′S 153°02′E / 27.30°S 153.03°E	100	2012 - Completed December		SEQ Energy Solutions Pty Ltd	Photovoltaic
VIC	Hilton Manufacturing	38°01′48″S 145°11′49″E / 38.03°S 145.197°E	100	2015 - Commissioned 2015	Melbourne	Metpro Green Energy	Photovoltaic[104]
NSW	Macquarie Park		99[105]	2015 - Commissioned	Sydney	Photon Energy	Rooftop power plant on raised steel frames, creating storage space[106]
VIC	Fenning Timber		99	2013	Bairnsdale	Solar Sunwerx	Photovoltaic [107]
VIC	SeaViews Manor		90	2013	Ocean Grove	Solar Sunwerx	Photovoltaic [108]
QLD	Jaques Coffee Plantation	16°57′43″S 145°26′17″E / 16.962°S 145.438°E	80.5	2012 - Commissioned May		NSE Solar	Photovoltaic, 322 x 250w Xinyou XY250-96F/M5 [109]
NSW	Sydney Superdome Solar Array	33°52′12″S 151°10′12″E / 33.870°S 151.170°E	70	1999 - Commissioned		Built by Energy Australia Sold to XYZ Solar Pty Ltd in June 2014	Photovoltaic ThinFilm 60W panels Tweets: @Superdomesolar
NSW	Building 46, Newington Armoury	33°51′S 151°04′E / 33.85°S 151.07°E	64	1999 - Commissioned 2007 - Refurbished		Sydney Olympic Park Authority	Photovoltaic
QLD	Moorooka Shopping Centre	27°31′52″S 153°01′23″E / 27.531°S 153.023°E	60	2010 - Commissioned December	Brisbane	Ingenero	Photovoltaic 300x 200W Suntech polycrystalline
NT	Bulman	13°39′36″S 134°19′48″E / 13.660°S 134.330°E	56	2002 - Commissioned 2002		NT PowerWater	Photovoltaic
WA	Carnarvon	24°54′00″S 113°43′01″E / 24.900°S 113.717°E	51.1	2005 - Commissioned (15.8) 2007 - added 30.2 2012 - added 5.1	Shire of Carnarvon	Alexander Fullarton	Photovoltaic
NSW	Dubbo	32°15′S 148°37′E / 32.25°S 148.62°E	50	1998 - Commissioned		Country Energy	Photovoltaic
SA	Kingscote Airport	35°42'32.11"S 137°31'27.72"E	50	2013 - Commissioned	Kangaroo Island	Ingenero	Photovoltaic[110]
NSW	Queanbeyan	35°21′00″S 149°13′48″E / 35.350°S 149.230°E	50	1999 - Commissioned		Country Energy	Photovoltaic
NSW	GPG Solar	32°15′S 148°37′E / 32.25°S 148.62°E	45	2008 - commissioned		GPG	Photovoltaic
NSW	Nimbin Community Solar Farm		45	2011	Lismore	Rainbow Power Company & Nimbin Neighbourhood and Information Centre	Photovoltaic [111][112][113][114]
NSW	White Cliffs Solar Power Station	30°51′22″S 143°05′20″E / 30.856°S 143.089°E	45	1981 - Constructed 25 kW, 1996 - upgraded 2004 - decommissioned		ANUTECH [115]	Originally steam piston then photovoltaic
ACT	Parliament House Solar Power Pilot Project	35°18′29″S 149°07′26″E / 35.308°S 149.124°E	43	2011 - Commissioned	Canberra	Todae Solar / Silex Systems Ltd	Photovoltaic[116][117]

Victoria

The 100 MW PV Mildura Solar Concentrator Power Station, formerly expected to be completed in 2017, is now cancelled.^[118] It was expected to be the biggest and most efficient solar photovoltaic power station in the world. The power station was expected to concentrate the sun by 500 times onto the solar cells for ultra high power output. The Victorian power station would have generated electricity directly from the sun to meet the annual needs of over 45,000 homes with on-going zero greenhouse gas emissions.^[119]

Western Australia

Western Australia now (Oct 2012) has one of the largest solar power farms in Australia, at Walkaway, 70 km SE of Geraldton. The Greenough River Solar farm was opened in October 2012. The 10MW field has 150,000 solar panels.

Northern Territory

There are 30 solar concentrator dishes at three locations in the Northern Territory: Hermannsburg, Yuendumu and Lajamanu. Solar Systems and the Federal government were involved in the projects.

The solar concentrator dish power stations together generate 720 kW and 1,555,000 kWh per year, representing a saving of 420,000 litres of diesel and 1,550 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.^[120]

The solar power stations at these three remote indigenous communities in Australia's Northern Territory are constructed using Solar Systems' CS500 concentrator dish systems. The project cost A$7M, offset by a grant from the Australian and Northern Territory Governments under their Renewable Remote Power Generation Program.^[121]

The project won a prestigious Engineering Excellence award in 2005.^[121]

The Federal Government has funded over 120 innovative small-scale standalone solar systems in remote indigenous communities, designed by Bushlight, incorporating sophisticated demand side management systems with user-friendly interfaces.

Australian Capital Territory

A new 20 MWp solar power plant has been built on 50 hectares of land in Royalla, a rural part of the Australian Capital Territory south of Canberra. It is powered by 83,000 solar panels, and can power for 4,400 homes. It was officially opened on 3 September 2014. It is the first solar plant facility in the Australian capital, and at the time of building the largest such plant in Australia. The facility was built by a Spanish company, Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV).^[32][122]

Solar cities program

Solar Cities is a demonstration programme designed to promote solar power, smart meters, and energy conservation in urban locations throughout Australia.^[123] One such location is Townsville, Queensland.^[124][125]

Renewable Energy Master Plan 2030

The Council of Sydney is attempting to make the city run 100% on renewable energy by 2030. This plan was announced earlier in 2014 with the blueprints made public on their website.^[126] This ambitious plan was recently awarded the 2014 Eurosolar prize in the category of "Towns/municipalities, council districts and public utilities".^[127]

See also

• Andrew Blakers
• Building-integrated photovoltaics
• Centre for Appropriate Technology (Australia)
• List of countries by electricity production from renewable sources
• Martin Green
• Photovoltaic and renewable energy engineering in Australia

References

1. "Australian PV market since April 2001". apvi.org.au.
2. Centre for National Policy, What States Can Do: Climate Change Policy, April 4, 2012
3. http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/ June 2, 2008. "Adelaide Showgrounds to have nations biggest solar power project"
4. "Account Suspended". alicesolarcity.com.au. Archived from the original on 25 January 2012.
5. Australia's Greenough River Solar Farm Opens Amid Renewable Target Debate, Reuters, Rebekah Kebede, 9 October 2012
6. "Solar Electricity Now Under Half The Cost Of Grid Power For Australian Households". CleanTechnica.
7. Sunniest places in the world, Current Results.com
8. "Is Australia falling out of love with solar power?". BBC News. 5 February 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
9. "In Australia, businesses are getting hit with a $500 fee designed to kill solar power". ThinkProgress. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
10. "US solar giant quits Australia". Renew Economy. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
11. "CSP Today". Italian project shows strong potential for sand based CSP. April 11, 2014.
12. "Australian PV market since April 2001". Australian PV Institute. Retrieved 16 August 2015.
13. Solar Homes and Communities Plan
14. Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator
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External links

• Live Solar PV map of Australia
• A daily solar map of Australia from Bureau of Meteorology
• The Desert Knowledge Australia Solar Centre
• Brumby planning to plug Victoria into the sun. The Age. 17 June 2008.