Home: Renewable Energy News: Thursday 20 August, 2009

Renewable Energy News

THURSDAY 20 AUGUST, 2009 |

NEWSFLASH: Australia's Solar Credits Legislation (Finally) Passed

Solar credits rebates now available
After a couple of months of Australia's solar industry being left in the dark in regards to rebates, the Solar Credits scheme, part of the Renewable Energy Target which in turn was previously tied to the highly controversial Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, has finally been written into law.

After failing to push the CPRS through the Senate last week, the Rudd government finally gave in to pressure to decouple the RET legislation early this week; allowing it to be passed in the House of Representatives on Monday night, then in the Senate a short time ago.

This means that funding will be made immediately available to service rebates under the Solar Credits program, a situation that many thousands of Australian households were waiting on before investing in a home solar power system.

Unlike the previous rebate, the Solar Credits program is not means tested and most home owners, businesses and community groups will be eligible for the scheme. Off grid solar power installations will also be covered. Solar hot water rebates remain covered under separate programs.

Credits issued under the program represent the equivalent of up to $7,500 in price reductions on a 1.5 kilowatt solar power system, depending on where in Australia the system will be installed.

The last two months have been challenging for the industry and very frustrating for households wanting to lessen their carbon footprint by installing a solar power system. After the sudden end to the SHCP rebate, then the delay of the full rollout of the Solar Credits scheme, many providers found system order numbers crashing, to the point where companies were laying off staff. According to a recent industry survey, some providers experienced a 90% drop in installation orders.

While the passing of the legislation will be welcomed by the industry, which can finally start planning for the future, it must now undertake a major re-education campaign to raise awareness in Australian households that adding solar power to their home may again be within their grasp.

The renewed interest in solar power will also see a re-emergence of solar power scams and sales tricks designed to trap the unwary. To help raise awareness of these practices, national provider of solar power solutions, Energy Matters, offers a free consumer guide to buying solar power systems.

Further information:

Solar Credits program FAQ

Australia's Renewable Energy Target Legislation - Update

Renewable Energy legislation update
NEWSFLASH 12:15pm August 20 - Solar Credits legislation has been passed

After an excruciatingly long debate in the Senate late yesterday afternoon that dragged on well into the evening, Australia's Renewable Energy Target legislation is yet to be passed, but is expected to later today.

The passing of the legislation will be a huge relief for the local solar industry, which has been left hanging for months in regards to rebates; with the situation threatening thousands of jobs.

When the bill does finally pass, it will likely unleash a flood of enquiries regarding solar power as Australian households, businesses and community groups rush to take advantage of the Solar Credits program that offers up to $7,500 in rebates on off grid and grid connect solar power. While the program has been active for some time, funding has been stalled pending the passing of RET legislation.

Senator Christine Milne, the Deputy Leader of the Greens, has been attempting to include amendments to the legislation without success. These amendments include an increase to the target, the implementation of a uniform, national gross feed in tariff, a lifting of the 1.5kW cap under the Solar Credits program and strategies to deal with the creation of "phantom" Renewable Energy Certificates under the Solar Credits scheme.

The Government and Opposition has opposed all these amendments.

"It is an ominous sign that Minister Wong has chosen to brown down the renewable energy target with the coalition and the polluters," Senator Milne said; but she acknowledges the renewable energy target legislation needs to be implemented as swiftly as possible, to "unleash the tremendous potential of renewable energy to re-energise Australia and create tens of thousands of jobs".

The "browning down" refers to the Government conceding on issues including the inclusion of waste coalmine gas and on more favourable treatment of trade exposed sectors such as aluminium; cards played by the Coalition. The Government is expected to make more concessions today before the legislation is passed.

Suntech Pluto Breaks Solar Panel Efficiency Record

Suntech Pluto solar panel breaks efficiency record
Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (NYSE: STP), the world's largest manufacturer of solar panels, has announced that it has set a new world record conversion efficiency of 15.6% on a commercial grade multi-crystalline silicon solar panel, surpassing the record set by Sandia National Labs 15 years ago.

The polycrystalline module conversion efficiency was independently verified by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Germany.

Once shunned by the Germans, Chinese solar panels have become increasingly popular in the country and the results from the respected Fraunhofer Institute will serve to further bolster Suntech's reputation of quality.

The solar panel is powered by Suntech Pluto technology utilising solar grade silicon with each solar cell having a conversion efficiency well over 17%. Suntech's new world record efficiency includes the framed area of the panel, without which Suntech says it would achieve a conversion efficiency of well over 16%.

The world record conversion efficiency was accepted by the scientific journal Progress in Photovoltaics (PIP). Professor Martin Green, Research Director of the ARC Photovoltaics Centre of Excellence at the University of New South Wales, Australia, has confirmed that the 15.6% multi-crystalline module result is the highest known conversion efficiency measured by a PIP-recognized test center."

Dr. Stuart Wenham, Suntech's Chief Technology Officer said the result for Suntech clearly demonstrates the power and versatility of the Pluto technology, which can be applied to both mono and polycrystalline wafers. Dr. Wenham believes there is still room for plenty more improvement in Pluto as Suntech pushes the boundaries of technology development to bring more powerful and reliable solar products to market.

The company has initiated commercial shipments of Suntech Pluto solar panels and currently expects to ship 10MW to 15MW of the products in 2009.