Australia turns on large-scale solar plant

Australia's biggest solar farm was officially connected this week. The 10-megawatt Greenough River Solar Farm in Western Australia -- a joint project of First Solar, Inc., GE Energy Financial Services and Western Australian state-owned power utility Verve Energy -- is expected to generate enough solar energy to power 3,000 homes, eliminating 20,000 tons of greenhouse gases each year. The plant, near the port town of Geraldton, consists of 150,000 of First Solar's advanced thin film PV modules solar photovoltaic panels spread over 198 acres. "The Western Australia community has developed a genuine appetite for renewable energy, and today we are 10 megawatts closer to a cleaner energy future," Western Australia's Minister of Energy Peter Collier said in a release. Verve Energy and GE Energy Financial Services each own 50 percent of the project. The Western Australia Government provided $20 million in funding. "As the largest photovoltaic solar plant in operation in Australia, the Greenough River Solar Farm demonstrates that renewable technologies can contribute to meeting Australia's future energy needs on a sustainable, cost-competitive basis," Verve Energy Chief Executive Officer Jason Waters said in a release. "This is a positive first step in validating the bright future that large-scale solar represents in Australia," he said. Verve Energy and GE are evaluating the possibility of a plant expansion up to 40 megawatts to satisfy growing demand for renewable energy, Waters said. Australia aims to generate at least 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. The project represents GE Energy Financial Services' first renewable energy investment in Australia. GE says it's portfolio of committed renewable energy projects worldwide totals more than $8 billion. Matt O'Connor, managing director at GE Energy Financial Services said the company sees "incredible investment opportunities in Australia," and it looks forward "to applying our expertise to help the country's renewable energy market grow." Australia has the highest average solar radiation per square meter of any continent in the world, the government says. About 858,000 homes in Australia have solar PV panels, accounting for a total installed capacity of nearly 2 gigawatts, data from the Australian Clean Energy Regulator indicate. That translates into a rooftop solar installation on one out of every 10 households. Ray Wills, chief adviser to the Sustainable Energy Association, an industry lobby group, said at the current rate of installations, he expects the 1 millionth home to be achieved by the end of next June, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Australia's largest solar farm opens amid renewable target debate

Australia switched on its first utility-scale solar farm on Wednesday, bringing the country a step closer to achieving ambitious renewable energy targets that traditional coal and gas power producers are now fighting to soften. The Greenough River Solar project, just outside the small town of Walkaway in the state of Western Australia, is a joint-venture between Western Australian state-owned Verve Energy and US conglomerate General Electric. It is expected to have a capacity of 10 megawatts, enough to power 3,000 homes. "The Greenough River solar farm demonstrates that renewable technologies can contribute to meeting Australia's future energy needs on a sustainable, cost-competitive basis," Jason Waters, chief executive of Verve Energy said on Wednesday. Australia has committed to getting 20% of its electricity from renewables by 2020 but big coal and gas-based utilities are arguing for those targets to be cut. The plant is General Electric's first investment in Australian renewable energy, and plans are already underway to eventually expand it to 40MW. The electricity generated by the plant will be purchased by Western Australia Water Corporation to power a nearby desalination plant. Australia is one of the world's most ideal places for solar projects. It has the highest average solar radiation per square metre of any continent in the world, according to government, and a population the size of New Delhi spread over an area the size of the contiguous United States. Australia currently gets about 10% of its electricity supply from renewable energy, about two-thirds of which comes from hydropower. But the plant opens as the future of renewables is clouded by a campaign by some utilities and energy companies to cut Australia's mandatory renewable energy targets. The renewable energy targets (RET) are currently undergoing a routine review by Australia's Climate Change Authority which will be wrapped up by the end of the year. Champions of renewable energy say a cut in the targets, which would require Australia to produce 41,000 gigawatt-hours of its electricity requirements by 2020, would devastate the fledgling industry. "If the RET was to be reduced or, in fact, to be removed then essentially the business case for renewable energy just would not stack up and the industry would fall off a cliff. It would stop dead in its tracks," said Kane Thornton, director of strategy, Clean Energy Council. AGL Energy, one of the few utilities that has called for the RET to remain the same, arguing the investment certainty is key for the more than the several billion dollars worth of solar and wind projects it has underway. "Amendments of the renewable energy target would certainly not be well received by investors who've got potential new projects that they'd be looking to develop," Tim Nelson, head of economics and policy for AGL in Sydney, said. But critics of the targets say that the 41,000 GWh goal by 2020 will amount to around a quarter of Australia's total electricity supply by then, due to slower than expected growth in electrify demand, more than the intended 20%. Origin Energy, Australia's largest energy retailer and an investor in renewables, said the RET target should be re-evaluated. Another leading utility, TRUenergy, which recently rebranded itself as EnergyAustralia, said adjusting the targets to take account of lower energy use projections could save AU$25bn (£16bn) or $840 for each electricity customer. The Australian Coal Association has argued that the RET should be abolished completely because it unfairly picks winners in the electricity market. Proponents of leaving the RET unchanged, however, hold that those who advocate changes in the RET, including getting rid of it, are those who stand to profit from an energy mix with fewer renewables. Source - Reuters