Federal Opposition spokesman for Climate Change, Greg Hunt, says the coalition is committed to solar power as an important part of Australia’s energy future.
Citing “enormous breakthroughs” in solar energy storage capacity, Mr Hunt says Australia could become the first “solar continent.”
“I think the science is moving very quickly,” Mr Hunt told ABC Radio. “What we see as the big problem for solar was storage. We’re now seeing things such as chemical energy storage being developed. There are enormous breakthroughs in this storage capacity.”
Mr Hunt said that Australia’s baseload power capacity, that is, the national power grid, would be increased by solar energy, especially during peak times.
“It’s about helping with the peak needs and that’s where solar panels or photovoltaic panels come in,” he said.
“We see that happening on three fronts, through solar homes, solar schools and solar cities. The second big part, which is in a way the very exciting part, is solar baseload, and that’s often known as solar thermal power. This is the long-term, base energy for your system.”
Mr Hunt said that the Coalition was very excited about the future of a solar Australia, especially advancements in technologies and improved storage capacity.
