Solar power in Australia
[4] The sudden rise in solar PV installations in Australia since 2018 dramatically propelled the country from being considered a relative laggard to a strong leader by mid-2019.
Australia leads the world in residential uptake of solar, with a nation-wide average of free-standing households with a PV system at over 20%.
[14] As per AS/NZS 3000 Wiring Rules assembly performed without a licensed electrician must be extra low voltage setups not exceeding 50 V AC or 120 V ripple-free DC.
[16] The combination of Australia's dry climate and latitude give it high benefits and potential for solar energy production.
According to The Institute for Sustainable Futures, the School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering (SPREE) at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Australia has the potential to install 179 GW of solar power on roofs across the nation.
[26] The Australian Government has financial incentives for installing solar systems in the form of Small-Scale Technology Certificates, also referred to as STC's.
[28] The number of Small-scale Technology Certificates to be issued is calculated based on the following formula: System size in kW x Deeming period year x Postcode zone rating.
Each scheme involves the setting of feed in tariffs, which can be classified by a number of factors including the price paid, whether it is on a net or gross export basis, the length of time payments are guaranteed, the maximum size of installation allowed and the type of customer allowed to participate.
[33][34] In South Australia, a solar feed-in tariff was introduced for households and an educational program that involved installing solar PV on the roofs of major public buildings such as the Adelaide Airport, State Parliament, Museum, Art Gallery and several hundred public schools.
[36] In 2008 Premier Mike Rann announced funding for $8 million worth of solar panels on the roof of the new Goyder Pavilion at the Royal Adelaide Showgrounds, the largest rooftop solar installation in Australia, qualifying it for official "power station" status.
[39] However, despite a worldwide shift towards greater diversity in manufacturing locations, concerns have been raised about the security of supply of imported panels as demand for photovoltaics increases.
A 20 MWp solar power plant has been built on 50 hectares of land in Royalla, a rural part of the Australian Capital Territory south of Canberra.
The solar concentrator dish power stations together generate 720 kW and 1,555,000 kWh per year, representing a saving of 420,000 litres (110,000 US gallons) of diesel and 1,550 tonnes (3.4 million pounds) of greenhouse gas emissions.
The project cost A$7M, offset by a grant from the Australian and Northern Territory Governments under their Renewable Remote Power Generation Program.
[98] The 100 MW Clare Solar Farm, located 35 km southwest of Ayr in north Queensland, began exporting to the grid in May 2018.
The Lilyvale Solar Farm, with a capacity of 130 MW AC, is under construction by Spanish companies GRS and Acciona, after an EPC contract was signed with Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV).
Bungala Solar Power Project north of Port Augusta is the first grid-scale facility in South Australia.
Sundrop Farms concentrated solar power plant has a generating capacity of 40 MW, and is the first of its kind to be commissioned in the state.
A floating array of solar PV panels is in place at Jamestown wastewater treatment plant, with a generating capacity of 3.5 MW.
[102] The largest rooftop solar PV array in South Australia was installed in 2017 at Yalumba Wine Company across three Barossa locations.
[103][104] Previous significant installations include Flinders University with 1.8MW across a solar carpark and building rooftops (it has announced plans for further investment to become carbon positive), Adelaide Airport, with a generating capacity of 1.17 MW,[105] and the Adelaide Showground, with a generating capacity of 1 MW.
The project includes a micro-grid management system optimising 5.7 MW of solar PV coupled with 2.9 MWh of battery storage.
The University of South Australia will develop 1.8 MW of ground and roof mounted solar PV at its Mawson Lakes campus.
At the Heathgate Resources Beverley mine there are plans for a relocatable 1 MW of solar PV paired with a 1 MW/0.5 MWh battery which will be integrated with an existing on-site gas power plant.
[107] In 2019, a ground-mounted solar PV farm was constructed by AGL and commissioned by Santos at Port Bonython with a 2.12 MW capacity.
[109] After September 2020, South Australia requires all new facilities, including home solar, to have low voltage ride through and remote disconnect.
The Victorian power station would have generated electricity directly from the sun to meet the annual needs of over 45,000 homes with on-going zero greenhouse gas emissions.
[113] The Gannawarra Solar Farm is a 60.0 MW DC single-axis tracking project located west of Kerang in north-west Victoria.
[114] The largest rooftop solar PV array in Western Australia was completed in 2021 by Solgen and AGF Electrical at Ellenbrook city shopping centre, with a total generating capacity of 2.8 MW.
[120] This ambitious plan was recently awarded the 2014 Eurosolar prize in the category of "Towns/municipalities, council districts and public utilities".
