Garrett Announces $4.2 million For Western Australia Wind Farm

 

$4.2 million in Federal Government funding for the Western Australia Mt Barker wind farm was announced a short while ago by Minister for the Environment Peter Garrett. The wind farm will be located on a hill on a private sheep farm 4 kilometres north of Mt Barker on the western side of the Albany Highway.
 
The three wind turbines at Mt Barker, sitting on towers 75 meters high and with a combined capacity of 2.4 megawatts, will generate around 8,400 megawatt hours of electricity each year; and in doing so will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 8,000 tonnes annually

According to Minister Garrett, Australia currently has 50 wind farms with an installed capacity of 1,306 megawatts.Western Australia has 17 wind farms - five grid connected installations and 12 supplying renewable energy directly to local communities and business. 
 
Minister Garrett said the Mt Barker wind farm will be funded under the Australian Government’s Renewable Remote Power Generation Program (RRPGP) and administered by the Sustainable Energy Development Office in Western Australia. Where possible, the assembly and supply of materials to support the Mt Barker turbines will be sourced locally.

The RRPGP commenced on 23 July 2007 and provides a 50% rebate on wind and solar power systems for households, businesses, communities, not-for-profit, business, government, schools and other organisations in  remote areas of Australia. 

Solar Power Information Session For South Australia's Mid-North

 

The Blyth Development Board in South Australia's mid-north is raising awareness in their community and surrounding regions about the benefits of solar power and associated financial incentives. 
 
South Australia's mid-north experiences level of sunlight that make it a very suitable region for utilising solar power for home, business and farm electricity needs.
  
A public meeting to discuss solar power and the opportunity to participate in a solar buyers group will be held at Blyth Cinema next Monday, April 27, at 7.30pm. All residents of the region and surrounding districts are invited to attend.
  
At the meeting will be Troy Harris from Energy Matters, a national renewable energy company specialising in off grid and grid connect solar power for residential and community purposes, as well as commercial applications such as solar farms as an alternate means of revenue generation for farmers.
  
Mr Harris will outline how solar power works,  provide information on government incentives and in particular the June 30, 2009 deadline for the Federal Government's $8,000 rebate; costs and logistics involved with installing a system and bulk buying discounts under a solar buyers group.
  
By collaborating with friends, neighbours and colleagues within a local area; home owners and community organisations can form a solar buyers group that provides increased buying power in order to get better pricing. Through bulk ordering, members of a solar buyers group can install a residential solar power system at well below market prices through Energy Matters.

Solar Power, Wind Cheaper Than Coal And Nuclear Energy

 

Households in Australia could be paying up to 30 per cent more for electricity annually by 2025 for coal based and nuclear power compared to a scenario where concentrating solar, wind and hot dry rock geothermal power were widely implemented, according to DESERTEC-Australia.
   
Roger Taylor, a researcher for DESERTEC-Australia, recently stated "'clean coal' and 'next-generation' nuclear offer only fictitious costs, unproven technologies and dangerous disadvantages."
  
DESERTEC-Australia's report entitled "Australia: Clean Energy Superpower" says that solar power, geothermal and wind energy is rapidly falling in price and the compounding effects of innovation and experience are bringing them rapidly to carbon-adjusted competitiveness.
  
A massive retirement of coal-fired power plants looms globally. Starting in 2010, much of Australia's current coal-fired capacity will reach 40+ years of age, meaning it will need replacement and carbon capture won't be ready. The organisation believes this presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make real progress against climate change by a full steam ahead approach to renewable energy.
  
Australia's leading geothermal energy company believes it can eventually generate hot dry rock geothermal energy for 4.4c per kwh, on par with natural gas without carbon capture and storage. Parabolic trough concentrating solar power could reduce in cost to about 4.4c per kwh by 2015, if not sooner. Wind energy should see generation prices drop to around 5c per kwh by 2020.
 
Given that in a rationally-priced market, renewables are now cheaper now than most fossil fuels for forward planning of new capacity; DESERTEC-Australia believes concentrating solar power, geothermal and wind should be aggressively developed between now and 2020, with current coal-fired capacity progressively idled and natural gas used as a 'bridge' energy source.

News for Tuesday 21 April, 2009

 

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• Solar Power : Vatican Just Can't Get Enough
  

View all news for Tuesday 21 April, 2009 on one page

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