Queensland’s Government has announced it will provide long-term financial support for up to 120 megawatts of installed large-scale solar generation.
In August last year, the Palaszczuk Government upped its election commitment from 40MW to 60MW and yesterday it announced it would double that.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk made the announcement while visiting the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado.
“Developing and expanding Queensland’s renewable energy industry is a central component of my Government’s energy policy agenda, and will create new jobs and diversify the economy,” Premier Palaszczuk said.
Called the Solar 120 program (previously Solar 60), Minister for Energy Mark Bailey said the initiative would create hundreds of regional construction jobs, provide an added injection of investment in the state and strike a blow for climate change; while delivering value for both customers and government.
The Minister stated QLD projects that have been shortlisted by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) that then go on to gain federal support will be eligible for funding from the State Government.
“By providing long-term financial support this initiative ideally complements ARENA’s program which will provide upfront capital grants to construct major renewable energy generators,” said Minister Bailey.
“The combination of these two initiatives will lower the cost of large-scale solar and remove obstacles such as financing and commercial viability to support the growth of large-scale solar in Queensland.”
One of the projects that may benefit is Kelsey Creek Solar Farm.
The Solar 120 isn’t the State Government’s only solar goal. The Palaszczuk Government has set a target of 1 million solar rooftops in Queensland by 2020.
There are approximately 473,257 solar panel systems installed in Queensland according to the most recent data from Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator.
“Queensland has some of the best solar resources in the world and is ideally placed to benefit as solar generation becomes an increasingly important part of Australia’s electricity generation mix,” said Minister Bailey.
Something that may give rooftop solar uptake in regional Queensland a bit of a lift was a recent announcement by the Queensland Competition Authority that the new feed-in tariff for regional customers in 2016-17 is 7.448 cents per kilowatt hour; 17.3% higher than 2015-16.
According to Energy Matters, a 4.16kW solar power system featuring Enphase battery storage installed in Brisbane can provide a financial benefit of between $1,054 and $1,285 a year; depending on installation and consumption scenario.
