The WA Sustainable Energy Association has called on the new Gillard Government to work with the Council Of Australian Governments (COAG) to develop a nationally consistent gross feed-in tariff (FiT) for renewable energy.
The WA SEA says a gross feed in tariff should be set at different levels to reflect the value of embedded generation and says the initiative will be an effective market mechanism that will ensure the most efficient renewable energy technologies.
According to WA SEA chief executive Prof. Ray Wills “Australia has voted and by electing a Parliament with green credentials, Australians have sent a clear message it is time to act on climate change, make Australia more energy efficient, and build renewable energy generation to power Australia in the 21st Century.”
A national, uniform gross feed in tariff has been called for by various industry bodies and politicians for over 2 years.
Greens Deputy Leader Senator Christine Milne championed a bill in 2008 for a national gross feed-in tariff to pay a fair price for all electricity produced by all forms of renewable energy. While the bill was supported in principle by a Senate Committee and sent to COAG for consideration, no firm action resulted. In a COAG meeting held in December 2008, COAG set what some described as vague principles for what appeared to be a diluted scheme and since that time, very little progress has been made.
Currently only New South Wales and the A.C.T offer a gross feed in tariff, with the NSW Solar Bonus Scheme now under review. Other states run net feed in tariff schemes that only pay the premium rate for electricity exported to the mains grid that is surplus to the consumption of the building upon which a solar power system is installed.
National solar power solutions provider Energy Matters is running a petition at FeedInTariff.com.au calling for a national gross feed in tariff program for solar power that has collected over 20,000 signatures so far. The interim results of the petition were tabled in Parliament by Senator Milne in June 2009.
