Thursday 13 October 2016

A solar future: powering Queensland’s renewable energy industries

A solar future: powering Queensland’s renewable energy industries

We are committed to growing our renewable energy industry—and creating jobs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
We've set up a range of initiatives to promote further investment into renewable energy developments.

One million rooftops

We have set a target for one million rooftops or 3000 megawatts of solar photovoltaics (PV) in Queensland by 2020. This will help lower electricity costs for families and businesses, create jobs and protect the environment.
With over 400,000 households and small businesses already connected to solar, Queensland has the highest number of installations in Australia. This number continues to grow as solar PV is cheaper than grid-supplied electricity in many cases.
Our solar target will help Queensland grow solar PV on businesses, community buildings and even large commercial or industrial sites.

A fair price for solar

To support the 2020 solar target, the Queensland Productivity Commission (QPC) has commenced a public review into a fair price for the cost of solar energy.
The QPC began its review in August 2015 and is due to report back in mid-2016. The solar price will be for customers who have already installed solar and those who are thinking about installing solar in the future. Customers receiving the 44 cents feed-in tariff will continue to do so.
This review is different from previous feed-in tariff reviews because the QPC will look at the public and consumer benefits from exported solar PV generation, including social, economic and environmental benefits. They will also look at a fair price for solar that does not have an unreasonable impact  on  electricity (network) costs for non-solar users.

Solar 150: large-scale solar investment

We have also committed to supporting up to 150 megawatts of solar generation to encourage large-scale solar generation and investment in Queensland.
The Solar 150 initiative, in collaboration with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), will help support the development of local, large-scale solar projects.  This  will provide a long-term revenue contract to successful Queensland bidders.

50% renewable energy by 2030

A renewable energy study is investigating the development of a renewable energy economy in Queensland. The study is focused on public consultation and community engagement, providing an opportunity for all Queenslanders to contribute.
The Minister for Energy, Biofuels and Water Supply launched an independent Renewable Energy Expert Panel on 27 January 2016 - to assist this process and to consider a credible pathway to achieving 50 per cent renewable energy target by 2030.

The future of solar

It will not be long before Queenslanders can choose to install battery storage systems to capture and use excess solar power. Battery storage technology is improving and costs are reducing rapidly worldwide, just as solar PV costs have reduced over the last seven years. With solar PV and battery storage  you will be able to generate your own solar power during the day and then store it to use at night, or to use if you need back-up power during extreme weather events. You will still be able sell clean solar energy back into the grid exactly when it is needed, helping to keep power costs lower for everyone.

Get involved

There are so many different ways to access solar power, and many of them don't require money upfront. Solar power purchase agreements, solar leasing, and other financing options mean you don't need a big deposit to benefit from solar power.
The Clean Energy Council publishes a handy guide on how to get started with your solar installation.
Last updated:
29 September 2016

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