A funny thing happened on the way to Australia’s energy future: the humble householder became a literal powerhouse of change.
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longside that domestic energy revolution, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) is working to bring the renewable energy ben-
efits discovered by those householders to the rest of Australia’s community, including businesses and industry. In the past few years, Australian domestic energy consumers have installed rooftop solar systems in such unexpectedly large
Renewable future for business and industry
volumes that it has taken both the renewables industry and electricity sector by surprise. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, one in five Australian households have installed rooftop solar panels or solar hot water systems in an effort to take control of their electricity use, reduce costs and do their bit for the environment. Just last year, Australians invested $2.1 billion in distributed, small-scale solar, making it the fifth biggest market for that technology in the world and almost seven times the $330 million spent on large-scale solar in 2014. International energy analyst Bloomberg expects half of the $55 billion spent in Australia on new electricity generation over the next 15 years will be on rooftop solar PV. Most of the business community has been slower off the mark to embrace renewables, which is perhaps understandable given the need to establish a business case before adding new technologies to industrial or commercial infrastructure. However, the ultimate cost saving to be made from making the move to renewables is making the proposition increasingly more compelling. Renewable energy has been a feature of Australia’s energy mix for several decades, growing from around 10% of electricity generated in 2005 to around 13% in 2013. Hydroelectricity has traditionally made up the bulk of that contribution. But with wind energy and rooftop solar PV maturing and
8 Sustainability Matters - Jun/Jul 2015
The Weipa Solar project powers a remote mine site and community. www.SustainabilityMatters.net.au