The 13,000-strong workforce in Australia’s solar power sector could be thinned out dramatically and very quickly if the portion of the Renewable Energy Target dealing with small scale installations was axed.
According to the Clean Energy Council, abolishing support for solar power systems would lead to the immediate loss of up to 5800 jobs.
“The Renewable Energy Target helps reduce the price of solar power and solar hot water systems for mums and dads across the country, and drives investment and employment in the process,” said Clean Energy Council Acting Chief Executive Kane Thornton.
“The small-scale part of the Renewable Energy Target makes up about 1 per cent of power bills and this is already falling. There is no need to cut it now, particularly when it won’t help consumers or the broader economy.”
Mr. Thornton says the only parties to benefit from destroying support for solar would be the owners of old coal-fired power stations; which he states in some cases should have been retired decades ago.
It was recently revealed that a weaker RET would translate to a $10 billion windfall for over the next 15 years for coal and gas-fired power generators – and households would pay more for power.
The Clean Energy Council has released a paper, “Why The Small Scale Renewable Energy Scheme Should Be Retained”, outlining the many benefits of the SRES.
According to the CEC, the SRES has leveraged consumer investment of more than $10 billion in the last five years. The investment by households in rooftop solar panels installed between the start of 2010 and the end of 2012 has delivered savings in network augmentation of between $900 million and $2.1 billion. Another positive side effect of the SRES relates to quality – in order to qualify for subsidies; equipment must meet stringent safety standards.
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