Solar Progress Summer 2015 by Smart Energy Council

ISSN: 0729-6436

Energy storage Up and running and the winners will be …

Outback solar Tyranny of distance sparks solar innovation

Energy Market regulator Be informed and aware

Energy savers Smarter households | Financing solar

12/14

issue 4

THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN SOLAR COUNCIL

Ex hi S b o 13 ition lar –1 an 2 d 0 4 Se M Co 15 a e 18 pa y 2 nfe & ge 01 renc 19 s 5 e

SAVE SOLAR STARS

Contents Australian Solar Council ASC CEO and Solar Progress Editor

Solar 2015 Conference

Solar Council advocacy

New Zealand Pacific Solar Council

Fellow member of the ASC

Positive Quality

Solar Gold, Solar Plus

ASC Corporate Members

Save Solar Heroes – a tribute Inside back cover

Solar Energy advances and insights Bright path: Tracking PV to 2050

Conversation about Conservation – ACF campaigns as told by Kelly O’Shanassy 32 Concentrated Solar Power

Solar: the greatest market opportunity Giles Parkinson on the unstoppable force 35 The rise of PV: leader forecasts

Market dynamics News and views

Saving Solar: power in numbers

Solar community news

Front cover: Power in numbers: Opposition Leader Bill Shorten along with Senators Milne, Palmer and Muir have joined forces with the Solar Council to Save Solar

Special features Network Reform – what’s in store Lyle De Sousa shares his expectations

Outback PV’s unique look

Solar finance the smart option

LED lights and longevity

The future for insulation?

Storage Progress Energy Storage Council takes off

Battery power to energise power

Noel Barton on the storage revolution

32 44

Solar products and services Fronius, GoEnergy and Supply Partners

SOLAR PROGRESS is published by the Australian Solar Council (ASC).

EDITOR Dr Bill Parker Phone: 0403 583 676 editor@solar.org.au

AUSTRALIAN SOLAR COUNCIL

Except where specifically stated,

CEO John Grimes

the opinions and material

PO Box 231, Mawson ACT 2607

published in this magazine

www.solar.org.au

are not necessarily those of

CONTRIBUTORS: Noel Barton, Lyle De Sousa, Giles Parkinson, Penny Parle.

ABN 32 006 824 148

the Australian Solar Council.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Joanna Joustra Phone: 0402 938 401 joanna@solar.org.au

provide readers with an in-depth

Solar Progress subscriptions: contact Anna Washington, Executive Assistant, ASC, anna@solar.org.au or call 0409 802 707

Solar Progress was first published in 1980. The magazine aims to review of technologies, policies and progress towards a society

Although every effort is made to check the authenticity and accuracy of articles, neither ASC nor the editors are responsible for any inaccuracy.

which sources energy from the

Solar Progress is published

sun rather than fossil fuels.

Solar Progress | 1 quarterly. www.solar.org.au

Bill Parker Editor

John Grimes Chief Executive, Australian Solar Council

In this edition, reference is made to the ‘second’ industrial revolution. One of the core elements of the first was steam and the use of coal to generate it. The second might well be driven in part by steam (now using solar thermal energy) and by the direct conversion of solar energy into electricity.

The Australian Solar Council is pleased to be holding the 53rd annual Australian Solar Council Industry Conference and Exhibition, on 13th14th May 2015.

No doubt the early 1800s was a time of turmoil as the changes affected societies. Today is no different. The arguments in Australia are divided roughly into those who want solar and those who do not. Its about political power. And worse, the influence of the old order. I have used the following quote in these pages before, and for the same reason:

This year the Australian Solar Council will be putting on the event independently of any international partners, and we are expecting Solar 2015 to keep growing. Our Industry and Policy Conference stream will again deliver expert analysis and opinions, giving you critical information on the Australian solar industry, in this time of flux. The Professional Development Conference will provide training and information that is relevant to the needs of solar installers and designers. The Professional Development Conference will again be a must to attend, with accredited installers receiving CPD points. The Energy Storage Council Inaugural Conference will also be taking place at Solar 2015, with an Energy Storage Pavilion.

“There is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things” Nicolo Machaivelli, 1490. Robert Booth used those words in the conclusion to his book The Warring Tribes (a history of the development of electric power in Australia). Now, the opportunity is well and truly before us to take on the promise of using solar as the power source.

Bill Parker

Exhibition space is selling fast and Solar 2015 is shaping up to be the best exhibition yet, with the solar industry in a state of uncertainty it appears that major companies have decided that this is the event they cannot miss. The Australian Solar Council is proud to be the “national voice for solar” and by supporting Solar 2015 you are supporting the solar industry.

John Grimes

2 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Our thanks go out to everyone who has mobilised in support of the solar industry in 2014. Best wishes for a sunny holiday period and we look forward to continuing the solar revolution with you in 2015. The Yingli Australia Team 1300 309 489 | australia@yingli.com

Solar news and views

First the good news about some of the progressive developments across the land:

Australia’s largest privately owned rooftop PV Todae Solar is installing a 1.06 MW rooftop solar system at Brisbane Markets following the winning bid brokered by Solar Choice. On completion the system will be Australia’s largest privately owned rooftop system. Todae Solar’s Danin Kahn said “The 1.06 MW project for Brisbane Markets … will hopefully act as a catalyst for other organisations to serious consider generating their own power through solar. This is a very

important milestone in the development of the commercial solar sector in Australia.”

Moree moves

The $164 million project has been funded predominantly by ARENA and Clean Energy

The turf has been turned at the much talked

Finance Corporation – two entities that were in

about Moree Solar Farm. Clocking in a mighty

the firing line of the Abbott led government.

70 megawatt on completion it will take top

The power behind the build are Spain’s

billing in Australian solar projects and the single-

Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV) with Green

axis tracking technology will help stem almost

Light Contractors carrying our engineering and

95,000 tonnes of carbon pollution annually.

construction.

Smart City Hot on the heels of The City of Melbourne’s Smart Blocks program to encourage solar rooftop on city buildings and which aims to source 25 per cent renewable electricity by 2018 with zero net emissions by 2020, the city has

taken another step forward. It has launched a Request for Information Process to “challenge the market” to supply the right energy solutions at the right price in a bid to combine purchasing power and signal the city’s interest in securing a competitive price for a long term electricity supply from renewable sources.

Turning the tide AGL which has four million consumers and is Australia’s largest electricity generator has appointed American Andrew Vesey CEO. A significant move given Vesey’s alleged ability to grasp the importance of new and emerging technologies such as solar PV, energy storage from batteries and smart grids. AGL has increased its fossil fuel capacity 50 per cent in five years and annually emits more than 20 million tonnes in emissions. Will new New Year ring in changes?

Wheely welcome Tesla Motors is taking off in Australia … stay tuned for news on Electric Vehicle dealerships in Sydney and fast-charging networks to power the cars. It will be some years before Joe Citizen can afford a Tesla EV but this move marks the road ahead for massive overhaul in transportation.

4 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Clean energy trumps fossils Cashed up to the tune of $8 billion, the Local Government Super Fund is divesting $25 million of shares in companies generating upwards of a third of their income via high carbon sensitive activities. And that of course takes in coal mining and coal power generation. The move comes as part of a growing trend around the globe to funnel stocks into sustainable developments, due in part to heightened awareness among superannuation contributors. And making the link with climate matters … at the time of writing Brisbane city was cleaning up after a massive thunderstorm showering hail causing millions in damage. All just two weeks after the city hosted the G20 meeting at which some refused to be silent about the risk of “severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts for people and ecosystems” due to climate change.

Sunny state All hail South Australia which generates an impressive 40 per cent of energy from renewables and has just added the 275 MW Snowtown wind farm to the green blend. Impressive credentials that are said to be some of the best examples of renewable energy sources in a developed nation.

Alert and enlightened … We feel we should apologise for harping on about dire warnings but climate control hinges largely on stemming emissions through greater use of renewables and that means solar energy which is central to the lives of many readers of this magazine. Heeding climate change warnings – “Science has spoken, there is no ambiguity in their message” – UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon warns humanity has never faced a greater challenge than climate change and dreams hang in the balance. “To ride this storm we need all hands on deck.” Some impressive commitments have been laid on the table – from Ethiopia to Iceland to Costa Rica and many in between, pledges are on the table from

being carbon neutral, phasing out carbon, being “fossil fuel free” or fostering green energy by 2025 or 2050. Topping the list in terms of contributions is China which plans to cut carbon intensity by 40 to 45 per cent of 2005 levels by 2020. Australia was absent from the UN list of pledgers but let’s just say small steps, big footprint … homeowners have seen the light. Australia has the highest penetration of rooftop solar in households in the world. Across South Australia, it is 23 per cent – in some regions in SA, Queensland, NSW and Western Australia, it is more than 40 per cent. India has earmarked 100 GW of solar capacity by 2022, helped by a series of solar park developed with the aid of low cost loans and grants.

ASM MONEY SALES

MARKETING

FINANCE

Save Solar

SAVING SOLAR: strength, support and solidarity A dark cloud continues to obscure the future of solar energy but the intense campaign to preserve the RET – and environment – by the Solar Council, supported by members and allied forces, is proving forceful and effective. Even world leaders have called on the Australian government to rise from the ashes of fossil fuels and breathe new life into clean energy initiatives. New measures to tackle climate change have gained significant media attention in recent times. The US and China have signed a joint commitment to limit carbon dioxide output, and the US has pledged $US3 billion to the Green Climate Fund to address climate change adaptation in poorer countries. Earth saving moves that are not before their time. The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports that renewable energy use must leapfrog from 30 per cent to 80 per cent of the world’s energy supply to stem climate change. Echoing findings is the Climate Council which issued a warning that global action to “substantially curtail the use of coal and other fossil fuels to prevent catastrophic rises in global temperature”. Progress is on its way: China retired 77 GW of coal power stations and has earmarked another 20 GW by 2020 setting it on path for cuts of 45 per cent by 2020. The trend among 39 (potentially 65) countries is putting a price on carbon. But it’s no secret Australia is a stumbling block. The Climate Change report “Lagging Behind – Australia and the Global Response to Climate Change” describes Australia as moving from a renewables leader to a “global laggard” with an unpalatable 70 per cent drop in renewable energy investment from 2013. This is largely due to uncertainty created by RET Review and Abbott’s deep seated belief that coal is “good for humanity” and “the foundation of prosperity … for now and the foreseeable future”. He is on record equating living standards with coal production. In a nutshell that is the ideological belief that the Solar Council is up against in its campaign to Save Solar, but who may have found new allies in unlikely quarters: a group of senior British Conservatives – politicians let’s say of the same colour as the Coalition – have declared Abbott’s approach

6 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

to climate change as “eccentric”, “baffling” and “flat earth”. A “betrayal of the fundamental ideals of Conservatism”. As one of the world’s largest per capita polluters, Australia is being urged to get real, to lift its game. Not travel in reverse gear. The reality is the Coalition government wants to reduce the Renewable Energy Target to a “real 20 per cent” or a fifth of the expected electricity demand in 2020, which would slash the current target from 41,850 gigawatt hours in 2020 to around 27,000 gigawatt hours.

Taking up the cause The Solar Council has been at the helm of a powerful Save Solar campaign throughout the year, regularly broadcasting news of the program of activities as follows: • Five Save Solar forums conducted in five states attracting several thousand everyday solar supporters who packed large function rooms from wall to wall • Support of staunch political allies – Senator Milne, Mark Butler, Bill Shorten, Clive Palmer, Simon Corbell and more – who stood side by side with the Solar Council and in front of the thousands of Save Solar supporters • Rally for Renewables in late September– staged in concert with CEC, Solar Citizens and other groups across the country, with several thousand peaceful protesters • The Save Solar campaign has also spanned TV and newspaper adverts and social media • A series of meetings with key federal politicians, coalition backbenchers and crossbenchers.

“Solar can become a central environmental and economic force in Australia.” Abengoa COO Scott Frier • Followed by more meetings with key politicians, coalition backbenchers and crossbenchers. The path to the steps of federal parliament has been well trodden by Solar Council Chief Executive John Grimes whose focus and clarity on tactics to Save Solar and shore up the future of the broader renewable sector has been hailed even among parliamentarians themselves. Undoubtedly the strength of the Save Solar campaign, which continues in force, would not have been possible without the enormously generous and indeed vital support of Solar Heroes across Australia. Industry stalwarts who have displayed strength and solidarity and who are listed on the inside back cover of this magazine can take credit for helping stage what is the most all-encompassing, powerful solar campaign to date.

Grassroots perspectives Solar Progress took a straw poll of industry players to see how things had panned out during the year. For well-known industry identity Paul Scerri the impact was devastating. “I lost my job as a direct consequence of the uncertainty created by the RET review,” he said. “I then had to fight hard to stay in the industry, I searched high and low for job opportunities but demand for work [at commercial scale or >10 kW] has declined dramatically. There is very little out there. Instead there is massive investor caution and uncertainty due to the federal government attitude.” Luckily Paul secured “one of the few remaining jobs in commercial solar” with an appointment at RFI and remains upbeat, stating his belief the industry faces an enormously bright future and it will “long outlast the current government”. History will doubtless prove Paul correct. Brendan Murphy of Fairlane Green who installs residential to smallscale commercial systems from 2.5 kW to 15 kW says demand has taken a slight hit. “But with all the talk in the media about the review there is a perception by Joe Citizen that solar subsidies have been pulled, they don’t realise rebates are still in place.” (Interesting comment and we suspect he is right – during the past year this writer has received numerous marketing calls from overseas stating “Did you realise that government solar rebates do actually remain in place …”] Others don’t quite get what the RET is, Brendan said. “Of course it’s great as it makes solar more affordable for homeowners but I think even some people in the industry don’t fully understand the mechanisms of it.” For his part Anthony Williams of Green Energy Trading says the RET Review has “led to stagnation in wind investment [but] the fixed smallscale renewable energy target for 2014 has seen a consistent number of PV systems creating small-scale technology certificates throughout the year, at a slightly higher level than the Regulator’s forecast. “It is possible that the significant media coverage of the RET review has helped to increase installations due to an expectation that support for PV would be reduced or abolished. Unlike in other years however, the prospect of a regulatory change has not led to a discernible spike in certificate creation.” His assessment of the commercial market is at odds with Paul Scerri’s experience, with deeper analysis of commercial certificate creation over the longer term showing an increase In the three months to September 2013, the installed capacity of systems over 10 kW represented 12 per cent of total installed capacity of systems creating certificates. In the three months to October 2014, this percentage had increased to 18 per cent, with the greatest growth coming from systems over 50 kW.

Efforts are paying off. John Grimes said: “The Abbott Government has changed its position dramatically as a result of the successful Save Solar Campaign. Just a few short months ago they wanted to abolish the Renewable Energy Target. It would have closed immediately had not all of us acted when we did, and as strongly as we did. “The solar industry should give itself a real pat on the back for the strength of its community Save Solar campaign to date, but much more work needs to be done. The so-called ‘real 20 per cent’ would effectively mean a 60 per cent cut in the Renewable Energy Target and would kill large-scale solar in its tracks (but) this is just the beginning of the process, an opening ambit claim. “The Government has made no case for cutting the RET. The best outcome for solar is keeping the existing small-scale and large-scale renewable energy schemes,” said John Grimes who awaits details on ‘no change to household solar’ and the threshold between the small and largescale schemes. Just one more vote from crossbench Senators – in addition to support from Labor, the Greens and the Palmer United Party – would block the Government’s plans to destroy solar “and the good news is it is absolutely clear solar is supported by a majority of Senators. “We remain very confident of securing the one extra vote that will Save Solar. “The final result will be in direct proportion to the amount of pressure the Government and Labor feel on this issue. “Inside and outside Parliament House we will continue to ramp up the pressure to Save Solar.”

Academic reasoning: RET provides all round benefit Dr Arial Liebman of Monash University lists all the reasons why Australia’s entire power sector – utilities included – should support the RET. That renewables should not be seen as a threat or damaging companies that own and operate coal and gas-fired power stations. In a market with shrinking electricity demand all players need a policy that stimulates investment. No RET = no incentive. “Taking advantage of the RET and the other new technologies is the only way modern electricity utilities can innovate, grow and successfully compete in a rapidly changing environment. Freezing the RET would be a false win for its opponents.”

Solar Progress | 7

Views on news

Who believes what “The world is largely very ill-prepared for the risk of changing climate, especially the poor and most vulnerable, who have contributed least to this problem. Time is not on our side – leaders must act.” UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon. “We don’t have to seek old pathways to prosperity… or energy that will melt glaciers”, [and] the quickest and surest way to connect the 58 million households with no electricity, is through solar and storage.“ Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi. “This project [Moree Solar Farm] is a great example of what can be achieved when a local community, industry and all levels of government work together. It stands to advance solar technology and contribute to the energy mix of tomorrow. The knowledge gained through the construction and operation of these power stations will … allow large scale solar play a greater role in Australia’s electricity markets.” Also: “Large scale solar is likely to be cost competitive with new coal-fired power stations by the end of the decade.” ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht.

“The Galilee coal projects are totally, commercially unviable. Any project undertaken is highly likely to end up as a stranded fossil fuel asset as the rest of the world rapidly transitions to lower carbon solutions. Coal has entered structural decline – there is no two ways about that fact.” Tim Buckley, Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). “Investment in new fossil fuel exploration is both uneconomic and unsustainable … finding new fossil fuel reserves at home and abroad is costing Australian tax-payers $A4 billion a year.” London-based Overseas Development Institute and the Oil Change Institute. “Coal is the energy of the future.” Tony Abbott (not speaking at the dawn of the industrial revolution but in 2014). “Developing renewable energy is a no brainer for society, as renewables help democratise the energy system,” NSW Environment Minister Rob Stokes.

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Power network

Network Price Reform: The impact on solar In this article Lyle De Sousa spells out the imminent and significant changes to laws governing electricity distribution businesses’ charges for network access. These changes might bring significant opportunities for the renewable energy sector, but they bring risks too. Be alert and prepared and stay informed, says Lyle. New rules being introduced by electricity distribution businesses will impact anyone who has grid-connected renewables. In fact, most people who use electricity or export electricity to the grid will be affected. Some consumers may be rewarded with reduced network prices. Given, on average, the network component of a residential consumer’s total electricity cost is around 50 per cent, any reduction could mean lower electricity bills. But merely having solar no longer will guarantee a customer reduced electricity bills. In fact, many solar users may find themselves lumped with much higher network charges. Whether you have a negative or positive impact will depend on where you live and what choices of provider you have for your electricity supply and export.

The Context Network businesses have traditionally applied prices based on a consumer’s total consumption. Until recently, when energy demand was increasing and residential consumers generally used electricity in largely similar ways, networks were well recompensed. However, for the last decade, electricity use has rapidly changed. Uptake of solar and energy efficiency, means networks are faced with ever-declining revenues using their old tariff structures. While overall consumption has fallen, peaks in demand (especially on hot summer days, with a lot of people turning on their air conditioners) are

“There are four immediate lessons for the renewables sector [one of which is] if you can change your energy consumption pattern so you use less energy at times of peak demand, you are likely to benefit. Energy efficiency and west-facing solar become even more relevant.” 10 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Storage solutions. Image courtesy Solar360

increasing. If you consume grid electricity during peaks, you contribute to the networks’ need for infrastructure investment to provide secure supply during those peak demand times.

‘Cross-subsidisation’: Air-conditioning and solar? Some distribution network businesses have been responding with new fixed charges for consumers with solar, instead of tariffs based on the amount of consumption. These fixed charges often appear to be arbitrarily high and can make the short term financial case for solar unviable. Enter the Australian Energy Market Commission. This is the body which makes rules for the National Electricity Market across the eastern seaboard states, including South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT. The AEMC recognises that existing network prices generally over-recover for off-peak use of the network and under-recover for peak use. A key mischief which the AEMC wants to redress is perceived crosssubsidisation. The AEMC commissioned research with these indicative outcomes: • A Victorian consumer with a 5 kW air-conditioner will cause about an extra $1000 a year of network costs compared with a similar consumer without an air-conditioner. That consumer will face about an extra $300 a year under current network prices as a result of using that airconditioner. The remaining $700 will be recovered from all remaining customers. Under the existing regime, other customers share in those higher network prices even if they don’t have air-conditioning.

Power network

• North-facing solar apparently poses a similar dilemma. A South Australian consumer with a 2.5 kW north-facing solar system currently pays about $200 a year less in network costs than a similar consumer without solar. However, north-facing panels generate only about 18 per cent of their maximum capacity during the time of peak network demand. As a result, the reduction in network costs is about $80. This consumer therefore pays about $120 a year less than the network costs. That $120 is recovered from other consumers. • However, if the previous consumer’s solar panels faced west, the situation is quite different. Output of the panels would more than double at the time of peak network demand. Even though west-facing panels produce less total energy, they produce it at times when it is generally more valuable to the entire electricity system. The reduction in network costs would be much higher, and the consumer’s $200 a year savings in network prices roughly equate to the reduction in network costs from the solar panels. In other words, under current network price structures, some consumers currently pay more than the costs caused by their usage of the network. Consumers who use a greater proportion of their energy at peak times pay less than the network costs caused by their usage. Of particular note is that consumers currently have no incentive to face their solar panels west and benefit more from facing them north.

The New Rules Outcomes like those above are likely to change under the new AEMC rules. • Networks will be required to recover their costs in accordance with pricing principles that reflect the efficient costs of providing network services to particular consumers. • Tariffs should be designed so that if consumers use appliances in ways that reduce network costs (e.g. by reducing peak demand), they will benefit from lower prices. If consumers choose to use electricity at peak times, their charges may escalate. • Incumbents will need to be consumer-focused in implementing changes to network charges. Tariff structures will need to eliminate potential for price volatility. Also, network businesses will have to set out tariffs in a way that consumers can readily understand and respond to. • Networks will also have to be more consultative with, and transparent to, consumers about how network charges are determined.   In the long term, the AEMC believes this approach can minimise overall electricity network costs borne by consumers. The AEMC anticipates there will be better utilisation of the network and deferral of peak demand driven network investment.

Opportunities for Solar and Renewables   The new laws will take effect gradually between 2015 to 2017. The full impact of the changes may take some time to filter through. However, there are four immediate lessons for the renewables sector: 1. If you can change your energy consumption pattern so you use less energy at times of peak demand, you are likely to benefit. Energy efficiency and west-facing solar become even more relevant. 2. Solar, on its own, may not in future lead to lower network charges. In fact, if you only have north-facing solar, you may be penalised. 3. Storage, together with larger north-facing solar systems, may come into their own. You may have a clearer incentive to capture as much energy during the day with batteries. You can then consume the stored energy during times of peak demand. In this way, you are less likely to be exposed to peak prices.

12 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

4. If you are a solar business, you should take care not to mislead your customers about network prices. You should explain network charges are changing and may even increase, depending on the tariffs and the customer’s specific consumption patterns. Being informed on how the new laws will operate may open up significant opportunities for the renewable energy sector. How you respond will be important. It is also worth noting that changes to electricity rules do not entirely happen in isolation. The renewable energy sector has the ability not only to provide input on how these laws are rolled out, but can itself initiate revisions to the regulatory regime. The industry needs to be more cohesive, educated and professional in its approach to do this effectively. While not as high-profile as the Renewable Energy Target, the renewable energy sector cannot afford not to engage with these developments. Lyle De Sousa is principal of Legal Energy Lawyers & Consultants. He is a commercial lawyer with 20 years’ experience and also holds a first class honours degree in mechanical engineering. Lyle acts on behalf of renewable energy project developers and advises on regulatory changes in the energy sector. After working at Freehills Lawyers Lyle spent seven years with Australian Energy Market Operator (and its predecessor, VENCorp) and has since been engaged by the Australian Energy Market Commission to help draft aspects of the National Electricity Rules. lyledesousa@bigpond.com

While this is a useful description of the changes being proposed AEMC and offers some insightful suggestions on how we might best respond, there is a different view says ASC President Steve Blume. “The bodies charged with regulation and oversight of the electricity market in Australia, the AER, AEMO & AEMC, are too often captives of the industry they regulate. The responses from these regulators to issues and problems arising from the massive technological change being wrought by solar and other renewables is skewed.” he said. “They tend to look through the blinkers of the narrow perspective of all incumbent beneficiaries in the market except the most important participants: consumers – all consumers. “We need to regulate to make the consumer the key. While ever the focus is on protection of the existing business models then the real advantages and benefits that could come from a transformation of the electricity sector will not be seen by consumers. That means we need to have active regulation (or de-regulation in many cases) to encourage a move from unidirectional flow networks with a tiny number of players to multidirectional flow networks with fair and easier access for players at all scales and a mix of technologies.” Blume added that would open up the market with the profits no longer coming just from selling electrons and charging for the poles and wires to send it to customers, but from a variety of business models that focus on services – and customer service especially. “This would also bring a broader societal benefit – distributed multidirectional electricity networks with diverse generation types and wide geographic locations is more robust, more reliable and less vulnerable to threats than the current networks. “Whether from weather, which causes more than three in four outages, or from mechanical failure, or even the threat from terrorism, our transformed electricity production and distribution systems will bring unsurpassed reliability and security of supply to all consumers. They’re the changes we really need!”

Outback PV

Frontrunners in Outback PV Think outback, thing big spaces and sparse populations. And that invariably means distance from the grid and greater reliance on independent power sources such as diesel generators. But are the days of diesel numbered? The demise of rebates and growing tide toward solar selfsufficiency is driving people living outback to seek smarter and greener power sources. Here we look at market inspiration and innovation with that in mind. Take a look at the map of large solar power plants across Australia and the outback takes top billing: the Northern Territory boasts 16 or more >7.5 MW solar plants, nine of which are in Alice Springs, while remote outposts in Queensland and Western Australia are home to another 13 large plants. All tapping into and creating energy from the abundant solar resource. However the scattering of the outback population across vast distances presents pressing demand for more localised power. And it does not get more local than your backyard. Market signals on the future of diesel rebates and feed-in tariffs prompted Rede and Renee Ogden of Ogden Power to focus on small-scale stand-alone power supplies that can sit alongside homesteads. It’s a novel development in more ways than one; Odgen is the name behind many large iconic outback installations. These include the largest dual axis tracker in the southern hemisphere as seen at Desert Knowledge Australia, the 180 kW solar power system at the iconic Araluen Arts Centre in Alice Springs, the on-grid installation at Crowne Plaza, and remote off grid system at Ulpinyali near Kings Canyon. At last count more than 1.5 MW of solar installations in and around the Red Centre.

The Odgen Power Pod is fast becoming popular outback

14 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Displaying true pioneering spirit, Rede and Renee Odgen put their solar savvy skills to the test designing and developing ‘Power Pod’, a portable solar energy system which they successfully trialed in their own home by temporarily disconnecting from the grid and powering all home equipment 24/7. Power Pod passed with flying colours. Described as a self-contained fully portable, modular, automatic, hybrid solar power station, Power Pods are designed to supply solar loads between 12 and 14 kWh/day from the Power Pod version 3.3 up to 45 kWh/day from the Power Pod 10. Each model is equipped with generator back-up to enable continuous power in any conditions year upon year with remote destinations in mind, stations, local communities, camp sites, eco resorts, mine sites, even solar street lighting and fishing camps. “Our Power Pod is gaining more customers as federal funds for diesel dry up, as shown by strong interest among station owners who otherwise rely on diesel powered generators,” Renee explained. “But we speak to a lot of people who are on grid want to disconnect.”

Outback PV Logsys Plug&Sun powers remote communities

The dynamic duo frequent local shows and expos to demonstrate the Pod’s power, portability and potential. “Solar energy is not a tangible commodity so our aim is to demonstrate the benefits of panels and inverters and the Power Pod,” said Renee who in a touching tribute on Facebook wrote of Rede’s brilliance in developing the Power Pod which was designed and is engineered, fabricated and constructed in Alice Springs.

Tech specs: Plug&Sun comes with two (as standard) or three trackers, the latter delivering up to 3.4 kWp via dual-axis tracking technology capable of storing up to 18 kWh a day (two trackers = maximum DC power 2 2.3 kWp 12 kWh/d).

Right on cue. “Other than the winding back of diesel rebates the withdrawal of feed-in tariffs is reshaping the market and causing those in remote areas to think about the future of their power supplies and many want to be more independent,” said Renee. “Our all-inclusive selfcontained power station will fit the bill for many.”

2.4 m; footprint 2.6 m × 2.6 m; weight 340 kg. Wind resistance up to 40 metres per second.

Power Pod is a story about Aussie ingenuity filling a market niche but it has some large international rivals, among them German manufacturer Soitec which has developed Plug&Sun to tap into Australia’s high levels of Direct Normal Irradiation (“among the best in the world”) which allows for very high electricity yields through low heat degradation at hot ambient temperatures.

Logsys tunes in to the outback Plug&Sun features Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) systems to track the sun every day of the year and generate dramatic increases in kilowatts, twice that of conventional PV panels, and produce constant power throughout the day including peak times when it is most valuable. The very low temperature coefficient of its multi-junction solar cells allow a CPV system’s performance to be much less affected by temperature than any other photovoltaic technology. The stand-alone solar module is also well suited to the hot sunny dry outback as no cooling water is needed.

Our resource rich land The outback is rich in the natural resource of sunshine. Something that Wiki appears to overlook by defining the outback as a place ‘extremely rich in iron, aluminium, manganese and uranium ores, and also contains major deposits of gold, nickel, iron, lead and zinc ores’. Um … what about abundant radiation – the best in the world?

16 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Output: 120 V / 60 Hz or 220 V / 50 Hz up to 3000 W Physical dimensions: Module array area 4.2 m2; maximum height

The distributor is WA based Logsys whose Electrical Engineer Mark van de Pol told Solar Progress Plug&Sun stores enough power for a household overnight and the system is ideal for remote locations with limited or no access to grid power. Among target customers are mine sites, farms and even industrial-sized airports. “Customers can go completely off grid if they want or need.” No fuel consumption, no noise, no CO2 emissions. Just power around the clock. Out of the box the Plug&Sun unit requires a team of two just two and a half hours to set up, almost less time than it takes to unpack and piece together flat pack furniture from IKEA.

Somewhere over the Rainbow way … Back to more Aussie ingenuity. Nested in the scenic hilly hinterland of Byron Bay is Rainbow Power Company, a pioneering solar entity established in 1987 with a “primary objective of turning the tide away from environmental destruction and towards environmental harmony” and anticipating tariff removal – keeping up with market manoeuvres – recently devised a stand alone Outback System though it is yet to be officially named such. As implied by its moniker, the primary market for the system is remote regions including the outback, with the RPC crew pre-wiring and programing the components. Each unit provides power at 3 kW and units can be added depending on ampage and currents. Rainbow’s off-grid manager John Davis who designed the system says the pre-wired stand alone solar unit becomes an “interesting option come 2017 when the NSW feed-in tariff is discontinued.”

SOLAR ENERGY

The quiet achiever During 2013 37 GW new PV capacity was installed in 30 countries (100 MW per day)

>11 GW in China 7 GW in Japan 4 GW i n US (investing US$96bn in new PV capacity)

During 2013 >135 GW – total global capacity 2013 >150 GW – total global capacity early 2014

Average PV system prices in 2013 ($US/W):

Cumulative global installed PV capacity by 2020 (estimate)

China Australia Germany UK Italy France Japan US

>400 GW worldwide 530-580 TWh, 2% of global electricity consumption

Residential Commercial 1.5 1.4 1.8 1.7 2.4 1.8 2.8 2.4 2.8 1.9 4.1 2.7 4.2 3.6 4.9 3.3

Source: Friedman et al. (2014), NREL and IEA

The 2050 outlook 4600 GW of installed PV capacity by 2050 (4) gigatonnes of CO2 each year ie up to 17% of global electricity provided by solar PV with 6300 TWh generated (Well up on the 4500 TWh or 11% forecast avoiding four

in the 2010 roadmap.) PV generation would contribute 17% to all clean electricity, and 20% of all renewable electricity,

with China accounting for

c. 37% of global

capacity by 2050. ETP 2014 hi-Ren Scenario

Current global cell count 90% of PV market: crystalline silicon (c-Si) modules (single(sc-Si) or multi-crystalline (mc-Si)

10% of PV market: Thin films (TF) down from 16% in 2009, <1%: concentrating photovoltaics (CPV) Source: International Energy Agency Energy Technology Perspectives 2014

Top efforts >110 GW China (with a target of 70 GW PV capacity by 2017) 50 GW each Japan and Germany >40 GW US 25 GW Italy 15 GW India 10 GW Australia, France and UK

Average cost reductions of electricity from PV 25% by 2020 45% by 2030 65% by 2050 – US$40 to $160/MWh Provided Total PV capacity installed each year rises rapidly from 36 GW in 2013 to 124 GW per year on average, with a peak of 200 GW per year between 2025 and 2040.

World PV industry employment estimates (approximate) 1.4 million full-time jobs globally 300,000 to 500,000 in China 312,000 in Europe 112,000 in India 90,000 in the US Solar Progress | 17

The 53rd Annual Australian Solar Council Industry Exhibition and Conference will be held in May 2015 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre and is free to attend. Up to 120 speakers will take the podium at the Solar 2015 Conference to present the latest developments in solar policy directions, market updates, professional development, and scientific and technical developments. The inaugural Energy Storage Council Conference will be held alongside Solar 2015 and will explore important issues relating to the advancement of energy storage solutions in Australia and globally. The program which is free to attend will focus on current market developments and trends, technology integration, case studies and policy making. The co-location of the Energy Storage Council’s conference with the established and highly successful Solar 2015 event will allow participants from energy storage and associated industries to network and do business all in one location.

CONFERENCE

Solar 2015 Exhibition

The Energy Storage Pavilion will feature all the latest technology and solutions within arms reach of the conference room. Don’t miss out on exhibiting in this dedicated area to reach the largest audience of energy storage professionals in Australia!

• This is the one show that solar installers do not miss • Great value stand packages on offer, tailored to your needs and budget • Gain access to global leaders, policy and decision makers • Proﬁle your company to government leaders, global partners and the media • Align your brand with the event that serves the industry • Get maximum exposure from exclusive sponsorship opportunities • Renewable energy, low energy lighting, and building materials • Monitoring & measuring PV system performance • Solar and related training and support products and services • Commercial and industrial solar • Community-owned renewable projects • PV, solar water and solar air heating • Built Environment – commercial and residential buildings • Solar System Design – installation, integration, monitoring • Energy Efficiency

For further details view www.energystorage.org.au or email Lorrae@energystorage.org.au

For further details view www.solar2015.com.au or email Sharon@solar.org.au

Energy Storage Exhibition The Solar 2015 exhibition will host a dedicated pavilion for energy storage exhibitors. This pavilion will be located in the same area as the Energy Storage Conference room, exhibitors will have direct access to hundreds of energy storage delegates attending the conference.

Solar 2015 Conference Some of the invited speakers contributing to the conference:

Grant Behrendorff

Glen Morris

Geoff Bragg

Mark Butler

Fiona O’Hehir

Barbara Elliston

Giles Parkinson

Ivor Frischknecht

Wayne Smith

Christine Milne

Oliver Yates

www.solar2015.com.au

18 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Proudly presented by

Wednesday May 13 and Thursday May 14, 2015 Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre

✔ ✔ ✔

SOLAR 2015: THE MUST ATTEND SOLAR EVENT OF 2015 SUPPORT THE INDUSTRY BODY THAT SUPPORTS THE SOLAR INDUSTRY ATTENDEES OF THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR CPD POINTS

Proudly sponsored by

Contact Kirsty:

0411 415 442 kirsty@solar.org.au

Sharon: 0418 202 870 sharon@solar.org.au Phone: +61 4 0980 2707 Email:

info@solar2015.com.au

Web:

www.solar2015.com.au

CONFERENCE ESC Inaugural Conference co-locating with Solar 2015 Free to attend and informative two day program Solar 2015 exhibition to feature a dedicated energy storage zone Network and do business all in one convenient location For further details view www.energystorage.org.au or email Lorrae@energystorage.org.au

Storage Progress

In the last issue of Solar Progress we launched ‘Storage Progress’ – a new permanent feature section in the magazine focusing solely on energy storage news and supported by the Australian Energy Storage Council. Moving forward each issue will include advice on Council activities and news. Since the Australian Energy Storage Council (ESC) was launched in

The ESC officially supported Energy Storage India, staged in Delhi in

September the response has been overwhelmingly positive. We are very

early December and hosted by the India Energy Storage Alliance

pleased with the levels of support received to date and the rapid uptake

(IESA). www.indiaesa.info

in membership reflects the need for a peak professional and dedicated industry body. With already more than 30 committed members, we are providing

ESC’s Inaugural Conference The Energy Storage Council is now planning its inaugural Conference to

a platform for all members to directly engage with other industry

be held in Melbourne alongside Solar 2015 Conference & Exhibition

participants. The Energy Storage Council recently collaborated with the California Energy Storage Alliance (CESA) and sponsor Ecoult to produce an

on May 13 and 14 and will host an informative and free to attend two day program reviewing the technology, applications and economics of energy storage.

industry webinar. Mark Higgins of CESA presented an update on the

The program will also focus on current market developments and

Global and US market and this was followed by John Grimes with an

trends, technology integration, policy making and industry case studies.

update on the Australian market. Chief Executive Officer of Ecoult John Wood completed the webinar presenting case studies on Ecoult solar smoothing and shifting, wind

Co-located with the well-established and highly successful Solar 2015, we expect over 4000 delegates to attend the combined event. Participants from across the energy storage and associated industries

smoothing and frequency regulation at multi-purpose projects in

will be able to network and do business all in one convenient location.

Australia.

The Solar 2015 exhibition will also host a dedicated pavilion for energy

Despite a few technical issues, the feedback from participants was extremely positive; regular webinars and working groups enable industry players to connect and discuss important issues. Additional informative

storage exhibitors. This pavilion will be located in the same area as the Energy Storage Conference room, exhibitors will have direct access to

webinar sessions are now being planned.

hundreds of energy storage delegates attending the conference.

Strategic alliances

Solar 2015 Conference & Exhibition.

Please refer to pages 18 and 19 for more information on the

The ESC is pleased to have secured another key international partnership by forming an official alliance with the China Energy Storage Alliance

More information on the Energy Storage Council conference can be

(CNESA) – China’s first and only non-profit organisation dedicated to

found at www.energystorage.org.au or contact Lorrae Ingham at

energy storage.

Lorrae@energystorage.org.au

Founding member

Silver members Mitsubishi Australia Ltd

Gold members

Edson Pty Ltd

Bronze members Dynamic Solar EV Power Australia Pty Ltd Greenlink Solar Towards Tomorrow Energy MyPower MP

20 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Standard Solar Clean Energy Solar I Want Energy Off Grid Power Solutions Solar Quotes

TKSolar Infinity Power Sunjuice Solar Solar PV Commercial

Easy as Apfelstrudel. Alexander G., product manager at Bosch Power Tec

For us it’s the details that make the difference. At Bosch we like to think: What would make your life easier? So our new BPT-S string inverters can be setup easily and fast with a unique RFID “e.Key” card and work with touchless gesture control for easy and reliable operation. The “hard facts” are convincing too: High efficiency rates, up to 2 MPP trackers, and an integrated data logger, just to name a few. Taking it further, we introduce the BPT-S 5 Hybrid. It combines high efficiency inverter technology and lithium-ion batteries to store the power generated by the solar system. That’s technology made by Bosch. Read more at bosch-power-tec.com or bosch-solar-storage.com

Storage Progress

Storage Progress The potential power of energy storage is igniting interest not just among the wider solar community but also homeowners. Many are keeping an eye on battery prices to determine the best time to invest in storage systems – next year, 2017 or sooner? What we do know is the amount of energy being focused at both a macro and micro level, each fast tracking progress and hastening affordability. The more affordable and beneficial a product, the greater the appeal, that is a given. But there are few better examples than the stellar trajectory of battery power which brings renewable energy storage units closer by the day. With more entities getting in on the act, the scale of advances and accompanying price reductions is dizzying: between today and 2020 battery costs are projected to fall from $360/kWh to $200/kWh and by 2024 they could be as low as $100/kWh. The cost of lithium-ion batteries alone should halve by 2020. Encouraging signs indeed. Less encouraging are cost comparisons with the US, where a ‘management system’ (5 kW of rooftop solar and 5 Wh of battery storage) costs just a quarter of that paid for by Australians who fork out on average around $18,000. Nevertheless, says global investment bank USB, a massive transformation is underway with solar plus storage already making economic sense for some Australians and as many as one million households investing $20 billion in storage systems in the coming years. Big numbers. Solar Progress spoke to an installer who fields many enquiries from residential customers but “cannot in good conscience at this stage” recommend storage due to the lengthy payback on systems costing “anything round $15,000.” But he concedes “It’s a heck of a lot less than the $25,000 price tag a few short years ago and costs are heading south at the rate of knots. We are poised to take on storage systems but will also be advising customers about the need to replace batteries every three years or so given they have a life span of around 1000 charges.

“The entire unit won’t need replacing but the batteries will. Even so, that will probably cost less than their original power bill all up.” This writer has just signed up for a 2.5 kW rooftop PV system (note: the government rebate came in at $35.60/STC or $1566) and fully intends to be among the first to tap into self-sufficient energy storage once it’s affordable (aka financially viable and repayable). The installer relayed the good news: yes, quite likely within five years a relatively compact storage system could be hooked up for as little as $5000 perhaps, and eliminate all future power bills.

“Our vision is to take infrastructure off-grid with highly reliable solar power and battery storage.” Competitive forces drive development The compelling case for greater local storage uptake was presented during the Energy Storage Council webinar by Solar Council Chief Executive John Grimes who scoped the battery market share by technology. He revealed that the balance will shift significantly once the lithium ion powerhouse that is Tesla kicks in with its 2020 production target of 50 GWh. “Economics will dictate the fall in lead acid and lithium ion battery prices from now,” said Grimes, adding the importance of finance and need to steer as well as educate investors and link investors and funders to energy storage products.

Big money

Battery power gets one step closer. Image courtesy Solar360 whose Storage System focuses on the end-goal: “Reducing the cost of electricity”

22 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Serious money is already flowing in; late October marked the opening of a gigawatt-scale battery factory in North Carolina by Swiss based Alevo which is sitting pretty on $1 billion ‘windfall’ private funding as well as a ready export market to China. The sprawling 3.5 million square-foot plant standing on the site of a former cigarette factory will in 2015 start churning out utility-sized lithiumiron-phosphate batteries capable of being charged in 30 minutes and discharged for more than 40,000 cycles. The batteries can be used for a range of services that drive efficiencies such as peak shaving, frequency regulation and renewables integration and will be used to store electricity generated by wind and solar plants. For tech buffs: The not-so-secret success of Alevo lithium cells lies in the non-flammable inorganic electrolyte, developed over ten years in German labs by engineers who determined it would be impossible to develop a thermodynamically stable system that contained organic materials. Thermodynamic stability enables the battery system to always return to the

Your Energy Storage Solution If you need power you can rely on for your domestic or commercial applications, donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t look past BAE Batteries to provide you with uninterupted operations and the maximum service life available.

In Australia BAE has earned a reputation for supplying quality German built and engineered batteries for a diverse array of needs. These include RAPS, UPS, Emergency back-up, renewable energy storage for Stand-alone and hybrid grid connected systems. This is backed up by proven performance in the harshest environments around the globe. R & J Batteries are proud to be the National distributor for the BAE tubular positive GEL range of products. BAE PVV and OPzV cells are available in amp hour sizes from 121Ah(C10) to 4710Ah(C100). We can also offer wet DQG Ĺą DW SODWH %$( FHOOV LI UHTXLUHG

/ rjbatt.com.au / 1300 769 282 / bae@rjbatt.com.au

Electromobility Charging station in infastructure

Off-grid system Private Consumer, Solarpower plant

Telecom Radio & Telecomunications, Cellular phone stations

7UDIÄ&#x; F 7HFKQRORJ\

5HJXODWLQJ V\VWHPV 7UDIĹ° F OLJKWV (PHUJHQF\ FDOO stations

Information/Advertising Illuminated posters, Rotary displays, Prism reverser

Back-Up & Critical power Uninterupted power supply

Storage Progress

same state following each complete charging cycle while an electrochemical loop regulates overcharge and deep discharge conditions and completely minimises battery degradation and reduces capacitance. Why is that so important? Well, we get back to outlay and return on investment over a give time. Reliability and longevity are welcome.

Smoothing loads Complementing the Energy Storage Council webinar presentations was Ecoult’s John Wood on solar smoothing and shifting, frequency regulation or multi-purpose projects in Australia and the US while integrating renewables into the grid. He showcased several storage projects including the 1.32 MW Hampton wind farm in northern NSW applying ultra battery storage solution for ”continuous variability management” while supplying renewable electricity to the main grid and – importantly – reducing greenhouse gases by 3000 tonnes a year compared to the equivalent electricity generation from coal. Invented by CSIRO, the Ultrabattery is described as a “new dimension” in lead-acid technology: a hybrid, long-life rechargeable energy storage device containing both an ultracapacitor and a lead-acid battery in a common electrolyte that operates very efficiently without frequent overcharge maintenance cycles. It can be used to continually manage energy intermittencies, smooth power, and shift energy, using a band of charge that is neither totally full nor totally empty. Ecoult has developed a product range beginning with kW systems suiting domestic customers right through to multi-MW energy storage ‘power stations’. With its eyes fixed on the multi billion dollar market, the company claims the Ultrabattery pay back can be as little as three years.

“Storage is going to be a multi-billion dollar market and will be essential in helping solar gain broader acceptance and higher penetration.” Drawing the line For its part, Australia’s Ergon Energy is saving millions in transmission and distribution upgrades by investing in S&C’s PureWave® Storage Management System which provides distributed stored energy at residential level and can support numerous smart grid goals, including peak shaving, load levelling, power factor correction and improved reliability. The rollout of 20 community systems commencing in early 2015 will improve the power reliability and efficiency on single wire earth return (SWER) lines. How it operates: Lithium-ion batteries will be charged at night when demand is at its lowest, and then discharged during the day to support peak load demands – reducing or even eliminating the need for Ergon’s customers to limit electricity usage during these times. “SWER lines are used to support remote locations, and energy storage is an ideal solution for improving the power reliability, quality and efficiency for rural-area customers served by these networks,” says Troy Miller, “Alternatives to increasing line capacity rely on significant investment in transmission and distribution infrastructure, which can cost over $2 million per line ... Ergon is deferring those transmission and distribution costs [by] investing in an energy storage solution.”

24 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Solar panels at Muswellbrook tower are installed at a slightly higher slope than usual to maximise winter solar capture while the battery rack container features a freecooling unit and active AC to moderate temperatures and extend battery lifespan

The units are said to enable better integrated rooftop PV systems by addressing issues with reverse power flow and voltage variability. Ergon Energy estimates these systems will reduce network augmentation costs by more than 35 per cent.

Powering infrastructure – setting a precedent? The rolling hills of Muswellbrook have taken on a greener look with the local radio broadcast tower cutting grid ties to run entirely on solar power. As seen on this page’s graphics, the telecom tower will be powered by a 39 kWp solar power installation using 215 kWh of batteries and an 8 kVA diesel back-up system for emergencies. The technology comprises 156 solar panels, 72 BAE batteries (supplied by R&J Batteries), three inverters and a monitoring system. The system has to be 100 per cent reliable as local emergency services rely on broadcasts for communications during bushfires and floods. The constant 24 hour power supply to the commercial site is supplied by the capture of solar power via 215 kWh of battery storage during daylight hours. Provided all chargers run at 100 per cent, batteries will fully charge in five and a half hours. Could this be a forerunner to complete power supply for remote locations? BAI Group CEO Jim Hassell describes it as a big step forward for the sector and is considering a network-wide roll out of the technology across Australia. Michael Gartner of project partner Photon Energy Australia which supplied the 24/7 monitoring system said “Our vision is to take infrastructure off-grid with highly reliable solar power and battery storage.“

subsidies solar power, electric cars and cheaper batteries will reach their heyday as power generation shifts into a different gear”. And who would dispute the forecasts of the world’s largest private bank which also believes by 2020 the cost of EVs may well be on a par with a combustion engine car – and operate without petrol bills!

Future prospects

Energy on show in Las Vegas The spotlight was on all things energy storage – product developments and launches, new partnerships, and gigafactories, cost reductions – at the Solar Power International conference held in late October. Among the announcements: Enphase’s AC Battery unit “to Accelerate Mainstream Solar Adoption … a system that delivers on the vision of enabling largescale implementation of solar power integrated with the grid.” Due for launch in late 2015 the smart-grid ready Enphase microinverter, plug-and-play storage, advanced control capabilities and load management has been designed to accelerate mass penetration of solar globally and make mainstream access to clean, affordable energy a reality. Enphase is partnering with Japanese battery manufacturer ELIIY Power to supply an Enphase AC battery “about the size of a computer monitor” and equipped with the S-series microinverter, to provide 1.2 KWh of energy storage and 275 W/550 W power-output. “Storage is going to be a multi-billion dollar market and will be essential in helping solar gain broader acceptance and higher penetration,” said Enphase’s Raghu Belur. The System also provides utilities with a higher level of visibility, insight and control over the energy grid by sharing information over the cloud and Enphase is said to be “keen to partner with utilities in Australia and [is] in talks with one” but nothing has been publicly announced.

Advances in battery storage are hailed a vital solution to ‘energy woes’ and the US Department of Energy has allegedly funnelled $14 million in grants to green battery makers to test how new applications of battery storage technology will enhance grid flexibility, storage capacity, and energy efficiency. Addressing the Energy Storage Council webinar in early November Mark Higgins of Californian Energy Storage Alliance mapped the potential impact of sectors on greenhouse gas reduction through ‘electrification’. California which leads the way in renewables has set energy storage procurement targets of 1325 MW by 2020 by the three utilities and is “sending a strong signal … [about] energy storage to be extremely cost effective versus all other forms of generation – including conventional resources.” Higgins concluded by asking a rhetorical question: “Why is Storage at the Forefront of the Energy Conversation? Greater energy security, lower emissions, better renewable integration and cheaper ways to provide service in remote areas, or areas without reliable access to the grid.” Agreed. Where is all this headed? Clearly the energy metamorphosis underway heralds a much smarter and brighter future. Specifically, non-polluting, cleaner. The renewables roadmap is being mapped out, is achievable and fully sustainable. The sun ain’t gonna stop shining in the near future. In a sense an energy marathon has taken off and it’s going to be a while getting to the final post – 100 per cent reliance on renewables – but we already know who the winners are. Seven billion at last count. Plus flora and fauna.

Reality check for the utilities There are those however that feel fossil fuel focused utilities may have already missed the boat, that today’s developments in energy storage signal the green light for installers and red light for utilities. Investment bank USB has – somewhat controversially – stated Europe’s large power stations may have reached the end of their run within just two short decades. By then, households and businesses would be generating enough of their own energy to power their cars and store surplus and “even without

The crew at R&J Batteries import and distribute a range of lead acid batteries as well as standby, deep cycle and energy storage batteries

Solar Progress | 25

Storage Progress

Storage in the grid and elsewhere Noel Barton takes a look at the storage revolution underway, saying within two decades electricity grids throughout the world will be very different through the inevitable rise of renewables – predominantly solar PV and wind – and developments in storage. Here he reviews the drivers for change, the uses of storage in the grid, availability, life-cycle concepts and the ‘experience curve’ illustrating the speed of price reductions. Powerful drivers worldwide supporting renewable energy and storage include pollution reduction, energy security, new-build energy infrastructure along with democratisation and decarbonisation of supply. Not all these drivers are present in every country, but collectively they represent an enormous and irresistible motor for change. They also frame a huge business opportunity. The worldwide renewables market grew at an annualised rate of 26 per cent from 2005 to 2013 (see figure) and strong growth is expected into the future. The price of renewables and storage will fall, the capabilities will increase, and suddenly the public will realise that the world has changed fundamentally.

• Transmission infrastructure services (transmission upgrade deferral, transmission congestion relief, other related uses) • Distribution infrastructure services (distribution upgrade deferral, voltage support), and • Customer energy management services (power quality, power reliability, retail energy time-shift, demand charge management) Benefits can be cumulative; the same technology can deliver multiple benefits. There are also major emerging storage opportunities outside the electricity grid, most notably battery storage for electric vehicles.

Storage technology costs The Sandia report also lists storage technologies and indicative prices based on data from more than 50 battery original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), power electronics system providers, and system integrators.

Global annual market in USD billion for renewable technologies. (From R. Pernick et al., Clean Energy Trends, The Clean-Tech Market Authority, March 2014.) Image by Noel Barton.

Storage uses Storage is used for much more than vehicle starts or mobile electronic devices. Sandia labs in 2013 [1] provided a long list of storage services and benefits in the electricity grid: • Bulk energy services (electric energy time-shift, electricity supply capacity) • Ancillary services (regulation, spinning/non-spinning/supplemental reserves, voltage support, black start, other related uses)

“It’s clear there is no shortage of candidate technologies for storage. The winners will be those that provide the best (cheapest, most durable, safest, most energy-dense) solution to the application at hand.” 26 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Capital cost of energy storage in 2012 USD/kWh. Data from [1], Appendix B. Image by Noel Barton. The categories shown in the figure are: 1 Greenfield pumped hydro (bulk storage) 2 Compressed air energy storage (bulk storage) 3 Na-S (bulk storage, utility T&D) 4 Na-Ni-Cl (bulk storage, utility T&D, commercial and industrial) 5 Va-redox (bulk storage, utility T&D, commercial and industrial) 6 Fe-Cr (bulk storage, utility T&D, commercial and industrial) 7 Zn-Br (bulk storage, frequency regulation, utility T&D grid support) 8 Zn-Br (distributed storage, commercial and industrial) 9 Zn-Br (small residential) 10 Zn-air (bulk storage, utility T&D, commercial and industrial) 11 advanced Pb-acid (bulk storage) 12 advanced Pb-acid (frequency regulation) 13 advanced Pb-acid (utility T&D) 14 advanced Pb-acid (distributed storage) 15 advanced Pb-acid (commercial and industrial) 16 Li-ion (frequency regulation, renewables) 17 Li-ion (utility T&D grid support) 18 Li-ion (distributed storage) 19 Li-ion (commercial and industrial)

The report assumes different lifetimes for the various technologies – 60 years for pumped hydro, 40 years for compressed air energy storage and 15 years for all the battery technologies. It’s clear there is no shortage of candidate technologies for storage. The winners will be those that provide the best (cheapest, most durable, safest, most energy-dense) solution to the application at hand.

Life-cycle analysis Recently, Barnhart & Benson [2] introduced a new metric for life-cycle analysis of various technologies for energy storage. Their metric, Energy Stored On Invested (ESOI), is the ratio between the energy a device can store in its entire life and the energy required to build it. The larger the ESOI, the better the storage system from a life-cycle point of view. Larger values of ESOI can be obtained by increasing the number of cycles and the round-trip efficiency as well as the depth of discharge (DoD) while decreasing the embodied energy. Barnhart & Benson gave the following ESOI values for storage technologies: Technology ESOI

Predictions based on present growth rates What does simple mathematics predict about the growth of the local PV market with storage? The Australian PV Institute presents data on PV

Li-ion battery

installations [5]. Cumulative PV installations in Australia were 923 kW,

Sodium-Sulphur battery

19,280 kW and 3,290,524 kW at the start of 2002, 2008 and 2014

Vanadium redox battery

respectively. Cumulative PV installations have grown approximately linearly

Zinc-Bromine battery

at 67 MW per month over the four-year period to the present. The current

Lead-acid battery

installed PV capacity is 3.6 GW.

Their conclusion was not encouraging: “Over their entire life,

In 2002, PV panels were only for the bold early adopters; now they are

electrochemical storage technologies only store 2-10 times the amount of

mainstream. Battery storage today is only for early adopters, but Liebreich’s

energy that was required to build them.”

experience curve for Li-ion batteries suggests such batteries will be

Clearly that news will not be welcomed by proponents of electrochemical storage and you can be sure that feverish work is under way to boost the ESOI score. Barnhart & Benson also provide specific information on various storage

mainstream within a decade or so. What would happen if cumulative installed PV systems, enabled by battery storage, continue to grow by 70 MW per month for 20 more years in Australia? (Note I suggest linear growth as a better model than

technologies. For Li-ion batteries they cite an overall round-trip storage

exponential growth.) That represents 16.8 GW of additional PV capacity, for

efficiency of 90 per cent, the number of cycles is 4000 at 100 per cent

a total of 20.4 GW. Our electricity system would be radically changed.

DoD, 6000 cycles at 80 per cent DoD and 8500 cycles at 33 per cent DoD.

It’s abundantly clear that big and rapid changes are under way. The

Moreover they say the fraction of Li in the earth’s lithosphere is about

changes will be driven by developments from overseas (technological,

2×10-5 (about one thousandth as abundant as Al or Fe), and that Li has an

societal, economic and political) and will come at great chagrin to

annual production of about 30,000 tonnes per year with embodied energy

proponents of centralised electricity grids powered by fossil fuels and

of nearly 1,000 MJ/kg.

nuclear.

The author [3] extended Barnhart & Benson’s study to include ESOI values

Australia has high retail electricity prices and a vast electricity grid serving

for solar thermal storage. The ESOI score for molten salt thermal storage

a small population, and these factors will only encourage rapid uptake of

with parabolic trough systems was 47. This was on a fair comparison

international developments. Combined PV and battery storage systems for

in that it represented electrical energy that would be produced from

household and small (100 kW) commercial installations will lead the way

underlying thermal storage. Overall, the life-cycle conclusion at present is

in Australia. Our existing energy infrastructure will be hugely transformed

that geological storage is excellent, thermal storage is good and electrical storage is poor.

Experience curve for Li-ion storage

within 20 years or sooner. Dr Noel Barton invented the much-lauded Barton Evaporation Engine and is well known for his significant and innovative contributions in the

Michael Liebreich of Bloomberg New Energy Finance has presented prices

energy sector. www.sunoba.com.au He is currently chair of ASC’s Sydney

for Li-ion battery packs for consumer and automotive applications (see

Chapter.

figure). His experience curve for consumer applications (see light blue line in figure) shows a price reduction of about 25 per cent for each doubling of cumulative production. For automotive applications the price reduction at present is even more dramatic (see dark blue, orange and red triangles in the figure), as confirmed by Ramez Naam [4] who reports the battery pack for the Nissan Leaf was priced at $270/kWh for H1 2014. The corresponding experience curve for PV panels, now established for more

References [1] A A Akhil et al., “DOE/EPRI 2013 electricity storage handbook in collaboration with NRECA”, Sandia Report SAND2013-5131 (July 2013). [2] C J Barnhart and S M Benson, “On the importance of reducing the energetic and material demands of electrical energy storage”, Energy Environ. Sci., 6 (2013), 1083. [3] N G Barton, “Life-cycle assessment for BRRIMS solar power”, Renewable Energy 67 (2014), 173-177.

than 35 years and still intact, shows a price reduction of around 20 per

[4] Ramez Naam, http://rameznaam.com/2013/09/25/energy-storage-gets-exponentiallycheaper-too/

cent for each doubling of installed capacity.

[5] http://pv-map.apvi.org.au/analyses

Solar Progress | 27

Solar finance

Solar finance gains traction Viewed from any angle, rooftop solar is an attractive proposition. Owners are tapping into renewable energy and fielding lower power bills which makes for a happy equation. In recent years PV systems have become increasingly affordable and popular and now the ease and convenience of solar finance provides even greater momentum. Take a straw poll and the vast majority of Australia’s five million or so homeowners currently without PV systems would install solar panels tomorrow. Topping the list of incentives is the feel good factor accompanied by lower power bills while harnessing renewable energy in place of coal and carbon emissions. So what’s preventing a mass uptake? The reality is despite sharp price reductions, an upfront investment of several thousand dollars in rooftop PV still presents a hurdle for some. But things tend to evolve rather quickly in the solar sphere and a very welcome and relatively recent development is the number of solar financiers entering the market, each spelling out the economics of solar loan options that enables more homeowners to benefit from a savvy investment in energy systems and savings. “There’s thousands of people who want solar and can afford the initial outlay, but there are millions [more] who want to save money on their power but don’t have the cash,” says Luke Konynenburg of Green Energy

“We have financed numerous off grid and larger installs where the client wishes to become self sufficient. Clearly these types of installs will increase as storage solutions, and the presentation and packaging of solutions with storage, commercialise further.” 28 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Trading who notes there are around two million homes with solar in Australia. “That leaves the potential for solar power in another 5.4 million owner-occupied homes, plus the tremendous opportunity in commercial and strata properties.” GET is best known as the environmental certificate agency and clean energy market advocate. Offering finance which was the “next natural step” has now become part of a strategic path. “If we look at the trajectory of consumer finance in other industries, such as retail or automotive, it’s clear there is a demand for an all-in-one solution,” Konynenburg explained. “Financing solar makes particular sense, as the right product enables homeowners to save money immediately, not in six or seven years’ time when the original outlay is paid off.” More homeowners are voting for and capitalising on solar systems as a powerful means of hedging against soaring energy costs

Solar converters Most financiers provide handy online calculators that enable prospective customers to quickly assess cost savings over the years. Punch in average daily kW use and cost per kWh and the compelling data surrounding pay-back and power bill savings appear in a flicker. But what or who constitutes Joe Average? “It is not as demographical as we are led to believe,” says Jay Howard of Classic Funding Group, Clean Energy Finance branch. “The general consensus in the market is that those that cannot afford to pay cash are the ones who the finance products are designed for and these are the customers who take up the finance most of the time. “This is not entirely accurate. Finance take-up depends on how the solution is presented plus how adept the solar company is at explaining [to consumers] the benefits of not using their own cash.

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Solar finance

“Simple? Well, not that simple actually. The problem is that as a solar company you are not legally allowed to explain the finance in detail, because you are not the financier and you do not hold a credit license.”

Scaling up Howard went on to say that CFG partners who are growing and learning to ‘sell a solution not a product’ and present long term value using finance are selling larger installs. He assesses the average residential deal a year ago at around $7000 and today’s at just under $10,000 (post STCs and including GST). “We are also seeing an increase in residential installs taking up a storage solution. We have financed numerous off grid and larger installs where the client wishes to become self sufficient,” Howard said. Clearly these types of installs will increase as storage solutions and the presentation and packaging of solutions with storage commercialise further. ASM Money which logs one commercial customer for every five residential customers is keeping a keen eye on the scope of solar storage developments. According to CEO Greg Ferrett the price tag for a typical storage system is around $25,000 and ASM Money which deals exclusively through solar retailers who sell the systems has so far financed a dozen such installs. Some a little out of left field. Ferrett cited a storage system destined for a metropolitan based business with valuable refrigerated stocks choosing to go off grid. “The battery back-up system provides a buffer not just in terms of power bills but also against power outages which would have a disastrous impact on the business. The storage installation makes a lot of sense with that in mind.” GET’s Konynenburg says finance solutions are “absolutely mandatory for systems with storage Because payback periods for storage systems are so much longer, and there is the cost of ongoing maintenance (i.e. battery replacement) that also needs to be considered.”

Powerful players And looking at the bigger picture: “We need to stop thinking in terms of selling solar panels and batteries, and start thinking in terms of energy solutions. My prediction for the future? We won’t be quoting solar systems, we’ll be quoting power by the kilowatt.” Still a relative newcomer, finance companies are developing a competitive spirit, each with firm views on optimum delivery. “GET clients are strong, independent solar professionals, who expect us to help grow and support their businesses with new initiatives and services.

30 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

“Overwhelmingly customers prefer longer [contractual] terms in the seven to ten year range. This enables the systems to be cash flow positive and save them money from day one, and isn’t that what most people want to achieve with solar?”

They don’t want a finance ‘facility’, they want a partner who can cut through the jargon and provide training, marketing resources and ongoing support,” Konynenburg said. ”There are some players in the industry pushing short-term, interest ‘free’ type deals, overwhelmingly customers prefer longer terms in the seven to ten year range. This enables the systems to be cash flow positive and save them money from day one, and isn’t that what most people want to achieve with solar?” Greg Ferrett of ASM Money who manages a team of 100 dealers says customers appreciate clarity on tech specs, which is why his company recruits technically oriented sales staff. “The finance market is divided between brokers and technology specialists. We believe industry knowledge is a distinct advantage when dealing with customers because it enables us to explain the finer points of rooftop solar performance and output in conjunction with finance paybacks and the optimum ‘rental’ package for customers. “The key to our success is high volumes and low margins which are a hook for prospective customers.” Back to Jay Howard who says some solar companies are coming to grips with how to combat lower margins through upskilling their consultants to sell a solution and not just to present customers with the best price. “But others continue to play the price game. Some are not playing the price game at all and use solar finance ‘incredibly well’ to maintain margins and upsell in to longer term and greater value installations. “Which types of businesses and approaches will be sustainable? History suggests that with commoditisation comes margin squeeze and with margin squeeze comes the requirement to differentiate or die. “Finance is a great way to package and differentiate. But – and this is a big but – using finance is not like picking a new product off the shelf and running out there and just using it to help you sell more. It does not work like that. It takes sales force reengineering, training, managing, changing and commitment.” It’s a fascinating time for the industry says Howard. “We are right in the middle of a long discussed and awaited consolidation, and at the same time, barriers to entry remain low.” Luke Konynenburg concurs. “Our industry … has barely begun, solar finance is critically important to the solar industry as a whole, to the extent that within two years no solar business still trading will be without a point of sale finance solution.” “The future for solar finance is – pardon the pun – very bright.”

From the office of the Chief Executive Here we spare you more reading and instead present in pictures the activities of Solar Council Chief Executive John Grimes. He’s been out in meetings across the nation and at Parliament House representing the interests of the solar industry. The images on this page help convey the scope and nature of those meetings.

Rally. e Solar tionwid y in Canberra a N : 15 rall mber ed the Septe attend eselja office s e m ri S John G enator Zed S outside

Novem ber 19 Save S : Hind ola m of Sola r Forum, Joh arsh (South Austra r Quote n Grim lia) es s and S enator , Finn Peacoc Christin k e Milne .

September 29: The Save Solar Forum in Brisbane

Save Solar Deakin (Victoria) October 9: The om ro r packed Forum – anothe

November 18: The Climate Council and John Grimes launch the Climate Council’s report: The Australian Renewable Energy Race: Which states are winning or losing? Solar Progress | 31

Sustainability

Observation and conservation Newly appointed Australian Conservation Foundation CEO Kelly O’Shanassy presents the vision and function of the Foundation which stands united with the Solar Council in the bid to Save Solar and foster the development of renewables for the greater good. SP: ACF undertakes a broad range of causes; how do you determine and select those more worthy of support? Kelly O’Shanassy: The ACF Board and its Council set the strategic direction for the organisation. Australia’s environmental problems are broad and complex. ACF cannot hope to tackle everything; we have to be strategic about what we take on as a campaign. We currently have a climate change campaign focussed on switching Australia’s energy mix away from fossil fuels towards renewables, a healthy ecosystems campaign working on re-connecting important natural sites – especially in the Great Eastern Ranges – and strengthening environmental laws, a nuclear-free campaign trying to break the dangerous uranium/nuclear cycle and a northern Australia team with staff members working with traditional owners to protect special places in the Kimberley and Cape York. Our strategy at ACF is not swayed by which party is in government. It is guided by the environmental needs and the willingness of Australians to speak up for nature and our future.

SP: Do different campaigns demand greater attention? Kelly O’Shanassy: The most challenging campaign has been on climate change. There have been great wins (the price on pollution, the Renewable Energy Target, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation) and great disappointments (repeal of the price on pollution, the threat to the RET, failure of our government to constructively engage with the international community). Clearly there is unfinished business here. SP: Can you outline your views on solar energy and the position of the broader renewables sector? Kelly O’Shanassy: It’s a tough time for the renewables sector at the moment, with the RET under direct attack from the Federal Government, but the long term future still looks very bright. There’s a lot of work that’s been done, including by government agencies such as AEMO, that shows our current energy system can be run on renewables. There’s always wind blowing somewhere and there is always sun shining during daytime hours. The costs of renewables and storage have plummeted over the past decade. The evidence is compelling that we

“We currently have a climate change campaign focused on switching Australia’s energy mix away from fossil fuels towards renewables.” 32 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

ACF CEO Kelly O’Shanassy says at least half Australia’s energy supply must be from renewable energy by 2030 can power Australia on renewables. ACF believes at least half our energy should come from renewables by 2030 with complete decarbonisation no later than 2050. Zero net pollution by 2050 is also strongly argued by global organisations, such as the UN and the World Bank. I would challenge energy companies to show how their plans for large-scale growth of gas fit in with what the science tells us is necessary for a safe climate. For any chance of a safe climate, at least half Australia’s energy supply must be from renewable energy by 2030. That means we need to be decarbonising our energy market fast. We have abundant renewable, clean energy that is ready to be harnessed today with no negative impact on the planet or our wellbeing. Renewables make sense economically and they create lots of jobs – more than coal and gas because renewable energy sectors are distributed. For example, there are solar PV and solar hot water installers right across Australia. Renewable energy ultimately makes for cheaper household electricity bills. And renewables are popular. Poll after poll shows Aussies want more renewables and less fossil fuels. But our government seems to be listening to the big polluting energy companies rather than everyday Australians.

SP:

What advice might you offer the utilities?

Kelly O’Shanassy: To continue burning fossil fuels will ultimately increase poverty and endanger humanity. This is not just the view of environmental advocates but also of conservative institutions like the World Bank and the UN. If energy companies like AGL, Origin and Energy Australia truly wanted to help alleviate poverty, they would be exporting renewable energy technology, not polluting fossil fuels. If I were on their boards I’d tell them renewables are the future and by continuing to base their business around burning fossil fuels they expose

ACF: Five decades of environmental wins

Misty Murray by Lucy of ACF their company and shareholders to grave financial risk. Not only will their business model eventually collapse, on the way they will do great damage to humanity in their quest to make a profit from coal and gas.

SP: What are the more successful strategies employed in engaging the community in debate and sponsorships? Conversely, what are the main difficulties in getting the message across? Kelly O’Shanassy: Face to face conversations are the best way of talking with people about nature and climate action, how it affects them and what they can do about it. If those conversations are between peers, the result is even better. ACF is working with local community leaders who are willing to have conversations with their friends and neighbours about their concerns for the places and people they love and what we can do about that together – whether it’s putting solar panels on their roof or meeting with their local MP. There is a saying that the ‘power of the people is greater than the people in power’. I believe that’s true. If we can increase the number of people in Australia that are connected by and willing to speak up for nature we can build a force that even the most jaded politician can’t deny.

SP: What are your key priorities for the coming months and years? Kelly O’Shanassy:

I would say our top five priorities would be: shifting Australia from fossil fuels to clean energy, paving the way for stronger national environment laws, re-connecting and safeguarding nature havens across the country, working with traditional owners to protect Australia’s environmentally and culturally rich north, and redefining the relationship between nature and the economy. Ambitious? Yes, but we don’t do it alone. ACF has close to 200,000 active supporters, across the country. So we prosecute our agenda confident that we have a large – and growing – number of Australians standing side by side with us.

ACF campaigned for many years in the 1970s and ’80s to protect the Daintree Rainforest and achieve World Heritage status for the Wet Tropics area. With other groups the ACF protested to stop the damming of the Franklin River in the ’80s. ACF helped Kakadu secure national park status in three stages between 1979 and 1991 and worked to stop the Jabiluka uranium mine from going ahead. ACF formed an unlikely alliance with the National Farmers Federation to set up Landcare, which successfully engaged communities all over the country to restore waterways and other landscapes. Over 40 years, ACF has worked to conserve the Great Barrier Reef from the threat of oil and gas extraction, mining, overfishing and trawling. ACF worked closely with the Kimberley Land Council, conservation groups and others to secure National Heritage listing for the West Kimberley in 2011. Early in 2014, when the World Heritage protection of Tasmania’s forests was threatened by an Australian government proposal, more than 300,000 people wrote to the UN to voice their disapproval. It took just seven minutes for UNESCO to dismiss the Australian government’s request to overturn the listing to allow these ancient forests for logging. When governments, against the wishes of Indigenous communities, approved the plan for a radioactive waste dump at Muckaty in the Northern Territory, traditional owners successfully challenged the governments’ decision in the courts, and won. Visit: http://www.acfonline.org.au/about-us/our-success-stories

SP: To what extent do you collaborate with like-minded organisations? Kelly O’Shanassy: Extensively. Since starting this job in April 2014 I’ve probably spent more times with the CEOs of Greenpeace, WWF and the Wilderness Society than my own staff. Collaboration among environment groups is at unprecedented levels right now. None of us can do it alone, but together we are a pretty powerful group. Kelly O’Shanassy was previously CEO of Environment Victoria.

Solar Progress | 33

CSP

Concentrated Solar Power Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) is a thermal process whereby the heat of the sun is focused onto a receiver to generate steam that drives turbines. CSP has advanced to stand alone systems providing uninterrupted supply during daytime as well as up to 10 hours after nightfall, using storage. Three distinct CSP technologies are in use around the world: the parabolic trough, heliostat fields focused on a central tower, and the linear Fresnel system. Each can be seen in operation in various parts of the world, indeed the use of CSP in generating electricity has been growing in recent years and capabilities have been boosted by way of storage systems enabling supplies during night or in poor weather. Growth has been aided by government support in policies and the maps on this page focus on two areas where governments and investors have seen fit to build CSP plants, USA and Spain, the latter being world leader with >2204 MW and highest levels of storage. CSP plants around the world currently have a combined operational capacity of over

3600 MW, a further 1500 W is under construction and some 6600 MW announced, of which just under 900 MW is in Spain. North Africa, the Middle East, India and China are fast developing CSP plants. Parabolic-trough plants account for nine in 10 CSP plants. In 2013 world solar power totalled 142 GW. CSP accounts for 2.4 per cent while PV commands the lion’s share at 97.6 per cent. Further information http://www.nrel.gov/csp/solarpaces/by_country.cfm

Madrid

Nevada

Sacramento

10 5 8

SPAIN

Spain

Las Vegas

California

9 11 6

1 12

Map courtesy FreeVectorMaps.com

Carson City

Map courtesy FreeVectorMaps.com

The maps presented here feature large plants exceeding 50 MW in capacity (the high-profile Gemasolar CSP plant has a capacity of 19.9 MW). Many smaller sized plants are in successful operation in countries with optimal levels of solar radiation. Regrettably, Australia does not feature as no plant of any significant commercial size has been built to date.

Arizona 4

Phoenix

Map ref no

Name

Details

Solaben

2012–2013: 200 MW Parabolic trough (4 units) Generation (est) 400 GWh/year

Solnova

2010: 200 MW Parabolic trough (5 units, when complete). Generation unknown

Andasol

2008–2011: 150 MW Parabolic trough (3 units) 7.5 hr storage for each unit Generation (est) 495 GWh/year

Extresol

2009: 150 MW Parabolic trough (3 units) 7.5 hr storage for each unit Generation 158 GWh/yr x 3

Palma del Rio I

2010–2011: 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units) Generation 114 GWh/y

Manchasol

2011: 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units) 7.5 hr storage for each unit Generation 158 GWhr/year

USA USA Map ref no

Name

Details

Ivanpah

2014: 392 W Tower (3 units in heliostat fields) Generation (expected) 1.04 TWh/year

SEGS

1984–91: 354 MW Parabolic trough (9 units at 3 locations). Generation 662 MWh/year

Solana

2013: 280 MW Parabolic trough 6 hr storage. Generation (expected) 0.94 TWh/year

Genesis

2014: 2 x 125 MW Parabolic trough. Generation (expected) 300 GWh/year

Nevada Solar One

6 7

Valle 1 and 2

2013 (aka Termosol 1 and 2) 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units) 9 hr storage for each unit Generation 360 GWhr/year

Helioenergy 1 and 2

2012: 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units at different locations). Generation 95 GWhr/year

Aste 1A and 1B

2012: 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units) 8 hr storage for each unit Generation 340 GWh/year

2007: 74 MW Parabolic trough Generation 136 GWh/year

Solarcor 1 and 2

2012: 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units) Generation 200 GWhr/year

Mohave Solar Project

2014: 250 MW Parabolic trough Generation 617 MWh/year

Helios I and II

2012: 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units) Generation 194 GWhr/year

Crescent Dunes

2014: 110 MW Tower 10 hr storage Generation (expected) 500 GWh/year

Termosol 1 and 2

2013: 100 MW Parabolic trough (2 units) Generation 360 GWh/year

34 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Solar – the greatest market opportunity the world has seen Australia’s foremost renewables reporter Giles Parkinson has tuned in to some impressive forecasts where ‘mass adoption’, ‘150 million US (PV) homes’ and ‘trillion dollar industry’ shape solar’s stellar outlook. The head of one of the world’s leading solar PV manufacturers and developers, SunPower’s Tom Werner, predicts that solar will be a $US5 trillion industry within 20 years, and represents one of the greatest ever opportunities in the history of markets. “We’ve just scratched the surface of this opportunity,” Werner told analysts at the company’s annual briefing in San Jose in late 2014. “I’ve been doing this for eleven years, and I’ve realised we’re just beginning.” Werner’s comments follow fast on the heels of the joint US-China pact on climate change. While the details of the agreement have been dismissed by Republicans in the US as a “war on coal”, and the Murdoch media globally as little more than talk, analysis shows otherwise. China, for instance, is expected to install 1000 GW (that’s one million megawatts) of solar, wind and other renewables by 2030 to meet its part of the agreement, which could even be ratcheted higher by the time all parties get together in Paris next year. That’s the equivalent of 1.3 GW a week of clean energy installed in China for the next 15 years – the clean and emissions free equivalent of a large coal-fired power station a week. Climate Progress reports on Fox News hyperventilating over the US-Chin deal – one of its leading commentators and claimed the day before there was no point US acting until it had signed such a deal, so it didn’t know what to say when it happened. It was interesting to note the former Murdoch publication, the South China Morning Post declaring an “end to the coal boom” in its coverage of the agreement. The impact of solar is clear Below are two key graphs from Werner’s presentation. Figure 1 shows where the solar industry is now and where it has come from. It is barely a

Figure 1 Solar Power at Electricity industry scale

Figure 2 Anticipated Solar Power Industry growth next two decades

scratch of the surface of the global electricity industry, at less than one per cent of total electricity demand, but its impact is already clear – particularly in developed countries where it is displacing fossil fuels, and in developing countries, where it is offering a cheaper, unsubsidised alternative. But this is where the industry is heading. It pretty much conforms with much of the mainstream predictions such as that from the International Energy Agency and IRENA.

A focused Energy Revolution SunPower’s predictions though, are largely focused on the “energy revolution” (Figure 3) that will take place at household level.

Figure 3 The Energy Revolution at the household scale. Over the next 20 years, he expects a period of mass adoption that will extend solar to another 150 million US homes, or a total of $US4.6 trillion. By that time, distributed solar – on homes and rooftops – will account for more than 10 per cent of total electricity supplied. This is why SunPower intends to treble production capacity in the next five years. Werner says the key to exploiting this opportunity is a combination of upstream technology, downstream platforms and channels, and access to capital. The company, Werner says, will not just be a manufacturer of panels and a builder of projects, it will become a provider of energy services to customers, which means a combination hardware, software, and services. This is an abridged version of an article which first appeared in Renew Economy: http://reneweconomy.com.au/2014/solar-seen-greatestmarket-opportunity-world-seen-48873 Giles Parkinson is founding editor of Renew Economy www.reneweconomy.com.au This story is published with kind permission of Giles Parkinson at RenewEconomy. Tracking the next industrial revolution

neweconomy

Solar Progress | 35

Energy savers

LED lighting leads the way Technological leaps in light emitting diodes (LED) have dimmed the aura that not so long ago surrounded ‘newcomer’ CFLs. Low energy, high output, long lasting LED globes are expected to flood the market in less than a decade and significantly reshape patterns of energy use. Does the scenario sound familiar? There are parallels perhaps with the speed of development and associated environmental benefits produced by the PV industry. It doesn’t seem long ago we were down at the hardware store replacing

Depending on the business, lighting upgrades can reduce energy costs by up to 80 per cent and that could mean the difference between boom or bust.

energy hungry incandescent bulbs for compact fluorescent globes. Longer

Shining light on LEDs

lasting lower energy CFLs were touted as the way forward. Now they are

Quantifying savings is critical to Shine On Solar whose 12-step system logs customer data on existing halogens and fluoro fittings along with nominal amp power and luminaries, baseline energy use and consumption to profile and contrast current draw against anticipated savings post-LED upgrade. Post installation LUX and circuit power tests form part of the audit. “By examining existing energy tariffs we can make accurate assumptions about upgrade cost and energy savings,” Johnson explained. “The draw on power is measured six months after the upgrade, with actual savings closely matching projections.” There is more: sophisticated ambient light sensor systems enable even greater efficiencies and savings by automatically adjusting LED lighting according to surrounds (amount of daylight, skylights) and movement.

headed for the scrapyard, with LED lighting taking centre stage. LED boasts impressive credentials: a lifespan is six times that of CFLs and 50 times that of incandescent lighting – some are promoted as lasting up to 100,000 hours or more than 20 years if used 13 hours daily. LEDs require half the energy used by CFLs and contain no mercury (unlike CFLs which typically contain from three to five milligrams). Also there’s no annoying warm up period when the switch is flicked. But LED is no newcomer, having been used for some time in vehicle headlights and in electronics applications (think of the blinking light on the USB stick). Science has driven significant improvements in LED chips, optics, thermal management and package configuration to produce greater efficiency and wider application, namely in general illumination: globes, panels, tubes, downlights, highbays (for commercial use). The pace of development is startling: in the past year alone LED performance has improved by 20 per cent.

Tech specs

Watts the cost of lighting

Light emitting diodes are semi-conductors that produce light when electric current flows across a diode and releases energy in the form of photons. LED is directional and uses electron movement for power and light with bulbs remaining relatively cool. Shining up to 100 lumens per Watt, LED sparkles in stark contrast with incandescent bulbs which emit a miserly 13-18 lumens per Watt. CFLs shine between 40 and 70 lm/W while halogens (a form of incandescent light filled with a halogen-based gas) pump out just 12 to 22 Lm/W, hence their bad reputation. More lumens per Watt translates into more light for money spent and less energy use. Reality check: bin the 60 W incandescent bulb and replace it with a 9.7 W 910 lumen LED bulb with a lifespan of 25,000 hours. Replacing two 150 W incandescent globes with two 10 W LED floodlights trims daily costs (if globes are shining for ten hours) from 3 kWh to 0.2 kWh.

Lighting in the average household consumes around 13 per cent of electrical energy. In commercial buildings that figure rises to almost onethird of electrical energy used, while in some retail premises it can be as high as 80 per cent. It doesn’t take much to recognise that soaring energy costs highlight the merits of investing in ‘tomorrow’s’ lighting technology, which is fast taking over shelf space at hardware stores and spawning specialist associations, exhibition space and businesses. Commercial energy retrofit operator James Johnson of Shine On Solar is one such specialist. He tells customers the biggest savings to be had are from the replacement of halogen globes in commercial buildings, a 130 W LED light replacing a 400 W halogen globe reduces wattage by 270 and produces energy savings of around 65 per cent. Not forgetting that halogen downlights operate at high temperatures which means the power hungry air-con has to be cranked up during summer.

36 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Image courtesy Shine on Solar

Price reductions will hasten the uptake, and on that score the US Department of Energy estimates LED lamp prices will fall from US$30/ kilolumen (in 2013) to US$10/kilolumen in 2015 and US$5/kilolumen by 2020. In mid-2013 in its comprehensive Building Plan report, Beyond Zero Emissions cited the cost in Australia of a 12 W A19 Philips LED bulb at $58, a rather steep 250 per cent greater than the US$23 of the US. Even so, the price down-under had been slashed by 25 per cent in just twelve months and continues to slide. A recent trip to a hardware store revealed 120 lm LED globes selling for $10 to $15, with a nano-second ‘light up’, 90 per cent energy saving and life spanning 15,000 hours. Also on the shelf were 7 watt $17 LED downlights – halogen replacements – boasting 450 lumens. (During ‘global’ research this writer managed to pick up 4 W 350 lumen downlight reflectors on special for just $5 at the local supermarket. Colleagues admit to buying LED lights on eBay to capitalise on smart technology while saving a few dollars up front. IKEA lighting department sells nothing but LEDs.)

The Buzz from BZE Beyond Zero Emissions notes global adoption of LEDs could save more than Paul Morrissey of Cherry LED is the name behind many LED projects across Australia, including that adorning the iconic art deco Hydro Majestic in the Blue Mountains. Cherry LED downlights have ratings of 50,000 hours usage are compared to a typical incandescent lifetime of 3000 hour which means “much less time climbing ladders to change burnt out or flickering globes.” Morrissey notes that one in two households and businesses are likely to be powered by LED lighting within three years. The question on people’s minds is when will LED lighting be mainstream in business and homes?

Speed and light Between 2011 and 2012, sales of LED bulbs increased by 22 per cent across the globe. Market analyst McKinsey anticipates that by 2020 LEDs will clock in at 70 per cent of ‘general lighting’ and others say LEDs could well replace all other lighting (street, commercial and residential) as early as 2024 with the “near total demise of all other types of bulbs”. More conservative forecasters predict three in four light globes sold by 2030 will be LEDs.

$200 billion annually in electricity bills. The more energy efficient a home is, the less electricity it consumes and that means fewer CO2 emissions. Importantly, BZE estimates that Australia-wide, the electrical energy savings possible with a complete LED lighting upgrade is in the region of 20 TWh per year. Big numbers that are on a par with the electrical energy output of one coal-fired power station over one year.

Keeping up with the times Johnson of Shine on Solar strongly advocates the adoption of newly available, improved technology that significantly reduces energy consumption and power bills. “Businesses and customers who want to stay competitive need to move with the times, to be proactive and embrace new technologies, implement change,” he says. “Businesses that drag their feet now will become less and less efficient with their old technology. “Replacement of old redundant technology is the driver, with lower maintenance and improved environmental benefits in mind. LED and PV are the predominant categories in getting building stock up to scratch and delivering quantifiable benefits.”

Insulation coverage Electricity demand has been on a 2 per cent slide each year for the past four years thanks in part to energy saving products and appliances. Among the more effective measures is ceiling insulation which puts a lid on winter heat losses and summer heat gains providing year round thermal stability and comfort. Building energy consumption and emissions account for close to a quarter of all the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions. And those living in insulated houses are some of the worst offenders, with roofs and ceilings emitting up to 40 per cent of winter heat loss and accounting for 45 per cent of summer heat gain, significantly pushing up demand for artificial heating and cooling. Beyond Zero Emission’s comprehensive Buildings Plan cites an example of a modest weatherboard or brick veneer house requiring a 8.9 kW heater in the non-insulated house but just 1.9 kW in the

insulated home to maintain indoor temps of around 23°C when it’s a chilly 10 degrees outside. A reduction of 7.0 kW or close to 80 per cent. Lower heating demand translates to big savings; the Insulation Council of Australia and New Zealand estimates ceiling insulation could slash annual household bills by as much as $300. And more importantly reduce a dwelling’s annual greenhouse gases more than 2.5 tonnes a year. Back in 2008 it was estimated just 5.08 million of Australia’s 8.2 million dwellings were insulated, with scope for much greater coverage.

Solar Progress | 37

Energy savers

“Aerogel certainly fits the exotic category … it’s been developed by NASA and if costs do reduce to the extent it becomes affordable it will be a real game changer.”

These facts and stats underpinned the ambitious agenda of the 2009 Homeowners Insulation Program (HIP) to install insulation into the ceilings of 2.2 million houses over two and a half years. The plug was pulled after just 12 months after four lives were lost and a series of inquiries have since been mounted, culminating in the Royal Commission Report which blamed speed of project delivery in the unregulated market and use of foil insulation for the disastrous chain of events. As someone recently commented, insulation still has a “bad whiff about it”. But on the upside, the Program upped the home insulation tally by 1.1 million, reduced heating and cooling bills and emissions, and boosted home energy awareness. It is believed between 65,000 and 70,000 retrofitted insulation installations are taking place each year and the ABS puts today’s number of dwellings in Australia at 9.4 million. Solar Progress spoke to Richard Keech who co-authored the comprehensive insulation section of the BZE Buildings Plan, which is allegedly described by Alan Pears as “the greatest resource on insulation”. The accolade is well deserved, the Plan provides extensive detail about thermal resistance R-values as commonly used for ceiling, wall and floor heat losses and gains; also U-values for windows and glazed doors. The Plan also delves into characteristics and performance of all types of insulation: bulk polystyrene, polyester, natural wool, glass wool, rock wool (i.e. mineral fibre), and cellulose fibre in the form of batts, blankets and boards; or as loose fill pumped, blown or placed by hand; reflective, thin sheets of highly reflective aluminium foil laminate. Keech told Solar Progress about the breakthrough in insulation presented by phase change materials which come with “good prospects” but wonders if another product will one day trump the market.

Which type of insulation? We’re talking about aerogel which is said to be the world’s lightest solid and boasts the highest insulation properties. The synthetic porous ultralight material is produced when the liquid component of gel is replaced with a gas through supercritical drying producing a solid with extremely low density and low thermal conductivity. It is described as feeling like fragile expanded polystyrene, and the images on these pages help demonstrate the incredible lightness of the material. No trick photography involved, we are told. “Some demonstrations seen on YouTube clips are quite extraordinary. The structurally strong foam – which is said to take 4000 times its weight in force and appears tarmac grey – is variously described as solidified smoke,” Keech said. Aerogel was first created and produced from silica gels back in 1931 by Samuel Stephens Kistler who later used alumina, chromia and tin dioxide. Carbon aerogels were first developed in the late 1980s and today NASA uses aerogel to line space suits and space shuttles.

38 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Superlight aerogel has been captured in images ‘floating’ on flowers and husks. Will the strong lightweight performer one day blanket ceilings across Australia? Given its appearance aerogel has earned many nicknames including frozen smoke, solid smoke, solid air, or blue smoke. Let’s add ‘floating brick’ to the list. It’s certainly heavy on the wallet, current costs prevent wide scale uptake for regular use. But it doesn’t take much to appreciate the potential for aerogel brands on the market such as Spaceloft to replace conventional insulation in the building and construction sector as well as in industrial applications. “It’s an incredible product, with insulation about twice as efficient as regular batts in terms of R-value per unit thickness,” Keech said. “For the time being this certainly fits in the exotic category. It’s been developed by NASA and if costs do reduce to the extent it becomes affordable it will be a real game changer in insulation.” For the time being, Aussie made Pink Batts serve the ‘blanket coverage’ very nicely.

Mind the gap Insulation may be a cost effective measure to blanket the home but small gaps can result in big leaks. Hence the recommendation for guards around downlights, and warnings about uninsulated metal framework with ceiling joists and wall frames effectively acting as a thermal bridge. Thermal imaging which detects instances of broken insulation can be costly. But maybe not so in the future: among the 100 student projects and aspirations showcased at Melbourne University’s Endeavour Exhibition in late October was PixCel, a prototype low-cost thermal imaging camera. PixCel is purported to provide infrared thermal imaging at about one tenth the cost of conventional thermal cameras. This is achieved by combining an off-the-shelf thermal sensor with a plug-and-play USB connection and converting existing smartphones and tablets into a thermal camera which offers the potential for detection and repair of patchy insulation. Plug in – scan – check the images and voila! Temperature variances are displayed in full technicolour.

Solar products services

SOLAR PROGRESS ADVERTISERS’ SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL

Your success is our success

Are you our next solar hero?

GO energy believes in Australia’s renewable energy industry, and we are dedicated to connecting with the best sales agents and partners to service commercial clients Australia-wide. We strive to innovate, providing cutting-edge services while maintaining the best possible deals for our customers – we make it simple for you to make sales faster, more efficiently and at greater profit. Our solar Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) are tailored specifically to meet the financial needs of Australian businesses, making the choice to adopt cleaner, efficient solar energy an easy one, both ethically and financially. We even offer the Best Rate Guaranteed™ on grid energy, making GO energy some tough competition against the industry’s big electricity players. We want to partner with the best, Australia’s true solar heroes, to spread the clean energy message and viable financial gains to every eligible business in the country. We are looking for reliable expert partners in the following areas: • Sales • Turnkey and Standard Installation • Lead Origination • Maintenance • Authorised Premium Partners (those who can do it all!) GO energy has invested in the success of the solar industry, as well as the success of your business. We have the right “Growing my business tools, people and momentum to move you has been an easy, exciting forward in this rewarding field. process with GO energy. More efficient, cleaner energy is in reach Their Authorised Partner for many and is a way to make a positive Program has ensured that I impact on the environment. Join GO energy stay at the top of my game in today to maximise your accomplishments in this competitive industry.” – this rapidly-advancing space. Doug Wilkinson, GO energy Don’t forget, we are able to offer an endAuthorised Premium Partner to-end service for solar installers through our business network, offering verified solar leads and best-price STC trading through our sister companies, Go Quote and CO2 markets respectively.

Service and empathy to our customers has always have been the key foundations of Supply Partners and act as the pillars of success for our story so far. Our business operates in a family orientated atmosphere with a focus on delivering quality solar products, industry leading warranties and first class service to our customer base. If your solar or electrical business has a focus on long term success and you are interested in forming a relationship with an ethical supplier that can deliver quality products like ABB, Phono Solar, Q.Cells, Clenergy, SMA, LG and Sungrow Inverters on time, every time, please contact Supply Partners. We have asked some of our key clients to provide honest testimonials on our services and this is what they have to say about us: ”I remember the first time I turned up to Supply Partners in my ute and not having enough money to buy a full complement of rails. Supply Partners were able to support me through this time and slowly build my account terms over the next 18 months, increasing the terms as I grew my business. This allowed me to continue to invest in marketing and this year I am the proud owner of my dream car and operate a solar business employing 20 people. The other positive thing I can say is that the account managers are fantastic people in and out of business, they are understanding of my needs, have been flexible when times have been tight and continue to show great support. Technically they are on the ball and have been able to assist us with systems from 1.5 kW to 100 kW. Jack, Supply Partners Customer “We have a nationwide retail network and not having offices in all of our service areas can make it logistically difficult. We use Supply Partners for a full kit service and they supply everything we need for our jobs including rail, isolators, panels and inverters. Their efficiency and accuracy allows our business to operate effectively across multiple states”. Ben, Supply Partners Customer “The first time we purchased from Supply Partners we desperately needed parts to complete a job for a very frustrated customer. No same day freight was available to our regional location. Our Supply Partners customer representative drove 5 hours to drop off the parts to ensure that we could complete our work on time and protect our reputation”. Deirdre, Supply Partners Customer Visit http://www.supplypartners.com.au/ or call (07) 3122 7584

The door to a profitable future with your company is open at GO energy. Speak to us now to start achieving more. T: 1300 433 633, E: info@goenergy.com.au, W: www.goenergy.com.au Opinions expressed on these pages are not necessarily those of the Australian Solar Council 40 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Solar products services

SOLAR PROGRESS ADVERTISERS’ SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL

proof as they feature advanced grid functionalities allowing dynamic adaptation to existing grid infrastructure. Smart Grid Ready inverters transform solar energy from causing problems with the grid to now solving problems of the grid. –– Fronius Symo – smarter, lighter, more flexible The Fronius Symo (3.0-20 kW) was launched this year. Its ability to communicate with the user, appliances, service agent and the grid makes it one of the smartest inverters available. With the Fronius SnapINverter

Challenges create innovations

design it not only reduces balance of system costs but it is also one of the

uncertainty over the Renewable Energy Target, Fronius Australia in

central inverters. In Australia where remote installations are common using

For Fronius Australia 2014 was a busy year. In the height of political addition to increasing its already high customer service level launched more products into the market than ever before reaffirming long term commitment to the Australian solar industry. “The renewable energy industry is going through a transition period. It is a challenging but innovative time. We believe companies willing to innovate over the long term will be successful in helping to move the industry towards 24 hours of sun. We are just seeing the tip of the iceberg as to what this industry is capable of,” says Adrian Noronho, Managing Director of Fronius Australia. 24 hours of sun is how Fronius believes energy supply will be

lightest and easiest to install. The wide input voltage range, dynamic peak manager and two MPP trackers ensure super design flexibility. –– Compact Centrals – filling the gap in commercial PV Fronius Compact Centrals combine the advantages of both string and Compact Centrals can massively reduce levelised cost of energy as they can be fully commissioned, serviced and maintained by a local installer. If service is required it can be performed by a Fronius Service Partner within one trip to site in a matter of minutes. –– Proactive Service All Fronius inverters are designed to be serviceable on site by a Fronius Service Partner. With advanced system monitoring, reporting and diagnosis a Fronius Service partner can provide unparalleled service response time within a single trip to site guaranteeing maximum uptime.

Exciting outlook for 2015

transformed in the coming years. It is a vision that is shared by anyone

A big part of making 24 hours of sun a reality is access to affordable solar

that supports renewable energy and the global impact it has toward

storage. In the first quarter of 2015 Fronius, a company with 69 years of

sustainability. The idea is that through innovative technologies, competitive

experience in developing battery charging equipment, will debut a unique

and reliable energy supply from solar will be accessible to everyone. In 2014

approach to solar battery technology. The Fronius Energy Package includes

Fronius was able to take significant steps toward realising this vision:

the first generation of Fronius inverters with battery storage, the Fronius

–– Energy Management Breakthrough

Symo Hybrid. With power categories ranging from 3.0 to 5.0 kW its

While solar subsidies wound down, electricity prices continued to rise

modular design enables multiple functionalities. The Fronius Symo Hybrid

making optimised self-consumption of solar energy more interesting.

can be used as a normal grid-connected inverter and the battery and

Fronius’ new line of SnapINverters have a set of smart energy management features with the ability to activate appliances automatically

emergency power function can be retrofitted later on so excess solar power can be used at times when generating conditions are poor or impossible.

when there is excess solar energy available. This keeps the levelised cost of

In addition to the Energy Package Fronius will also be launching their

the solar energy low and increases convenient access to the supply of that

highly anticipated single phase Primo series (3.5 – 8.2 kW) and the Fronius

energy for the consumer.

Agilo TL (360 & 460 kW) in Australia Q1 next year. Looks like 2015 will be

–– Smart Grid Ready

another busy one for Fronius Australia.

As the demand for solar energy grows communication with the network becomes more important. Fronius smart grid ready inverters are future

For more information visit www.fronius.com.au or email pv-sales-australia@fronius.com

Opinions expressed on these pages are not necessarily those of the Australian Solar Council 42 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

Solar community news Winaico’s winning ways

United Solar Energy

The dynamic team at Winaico generously hosted a champagne and croissant laden breakfast to warmly introduce installers, solar heavyweights and others to visiting company Vice President Sascha Rossmann. Paying tribute to the dedication of installers Rossmann said they “represent us and are the last but most important piece in the value chain.“ On a philosophical note he added: “You can not market integrity – only live it.”

Richard Vargas of United Solar has developed SolarGuard off-site managed solar program to monitor and manage power production 24/7 that “helps maintain smooth running” by alerting the team if problems arise. Should the system produce less (lower yield) than anticipated, SolarGuard pays the difference. Once telecom engineer Richard who developed the software that operates on a 3G SIM card said “We are [effectively] the power distributor.” Following audits and by meeting quality and ethical standards, United Solar Energy became ASC Solar Gold Certified.

Richmond Football Club goes solar Kicking carbon emissions at its 170 year old training ground is the Tigers who have seen the light in installing a 99.77 kW solar system with a bit of help from Enpthase Energy, Yingli Green Energy and solar installer Metro Solar. Enphase’s ‘Burst Mode’ technology, which initiates during low-light conditions, enables the system to produce additional generation in the morning and at dusk.

JA Solar Multi-SI solar cells JA Solar has achieved 20 per cent solar energy conversion efficiency in its multi-crystalline silicon solar cell. By using advanced proprietary light trapping and surface passivation technologies, JA Solar researchers attained the absolute 1 per cent increase just nine months on from the 19 per cent milestone. Also of note: JA Solar has become signatory to the ASC Positive Quality program.

Photo courtesy of SunCarrier

The dawn and rise of

PV The future of PV will become part of the future of world economies. It can be said that photovoltaic technology in whatever form or commercial setting will be a cornerstone in the next industrial revolution. Just over a year ago, The Fraunhofer Institute claimed a new world record for photovoltaic cell efficiency at 44.7 per cent (three junction concentrator technology). The record for silicon heterostructures stood at 29 per cent this month. Naturally, these are lab results and cost would be prohibitive in the commercial sector, but it does demonstrate that there is a lot of scope for increasing the amount electricity generated by PV installations. At present in the retail sector in Australia, the efficiency value is around the 20 per cent level, which has been no deterrent to consumers wishing to install a solar PV system. The data for installed roof-top PV in Australia in 2004 was 6917 kW, ten years later it is 3,897,342 kW. There is no doubt that PV has taken its place as a consumer product and satisfies the wish to do two things – reduce the family electricity bill and contribute to the reduction in Greenhouse emissions. Australia has done remarkably well. Worldwide, the PV story is promising indeed as we see production plants crank up. The story is told graphically on page 35. The PV industry

44 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

is following the classical three-phase growth from pioneers, to early adopters to mass adoption. The data is American but it can apply anywhere. But what do experts say? Solar Progress invited a group of prominent solar people to give a brief overview of where they saw the future of PV. “Solar PV is on track to becoming one of the cheapest options for electricity generation, even cheaper than coal. Over the next 10-15 years, costs will at least halve, while conversion efficiencies have the potential to double.” said Scientia Professor Martin A. Green at the Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics UNSW.

“The PV industry is following the classical three-phase growth from pioneers, to early adopters to mass adoption.”

Professor Andrew Blakers Director, Centre for Sustainable Energy Systems, Australian National University, commented: “I think the technology future of PV will be steadily improving silicon solar cells. I think that there will be sustained exponential growth in PV leading to a massive industry by the 2020s.” Nigel Morris of Solar Business Systems added “In a word – Inevitable. The economics are right in many places and will get better. It’s an unstoppable tide. Manufacturing scale will drive average efficiency above 20 per cent within a few years and new materials science will push the best to 30 per cent in production too. I also think we’ll see advanced electronics lift system performance, intelligence and control to new levels very quickly. PV, electronics and data will integrate to become inclusive smart energy management systems” Finally Assoc Professor Alistair Sproule of UNSW contributed: “Labs will continue to push up efficiencies – ultimately in the next 10 years or more. Multiple junction cells and similar technologies can approach 80 per cent efficiency. Mass production of silicon solar cells will continue to makes advances in lowering costs and improving performance. “The other big challenge is that as cell prices and performance improve, other areas of the whole PV system need to be addressed.” he added. “Integration of PV with roofing materials and additionality – e.g. PV/ Thermal will allow PV rooftops to do more – solar air heating, solar water heating, solar cooling – it may offer a pathway that has the best of both worlds.” And if you are keen to get a regular update on the R&D work around the world, visit: http://www.nrel.gov/ncpv/images/efficiency_chart.jpg

NZ and Pacific Solar Council developments Barbara Elliston presents the latest developments on the New Zealand and Pacific Solar Council which has kick-started a program of industry training. As the process for finding establishment board directors continues, the recruitment of foundation members for the NZPSC is about to commence. In anticipation of the formation of the NZPSC, co-founder of the NZPSC (and ASC director) Barbara Elliston has been coordinating both PV installers and PV inspectors training courses over the past 18 months, with support from fellow ASC directors Glen Morris and Geoff Bragg. These courses fill a gap in the market for parties with a professional desire to understand PV systems and obtain training in PV systems or battery hybrid systems, as well as those charged with the electrical safety inspection of PV arrays. A database of New Zealand companies that have participated in PV installers and PV inspectors training courses is being compiled as part of the upcoming membership drive, and companies which have participated in these courses and who become members of the NZPSC will be listed on the NZPSC website.

Well informed solar identities

The active role taken in these training forums by ASC’s directors have resulted in a high regard for these courses, from both installation companies fielding increasing enquiries as interest from the local NZ market intensifies, as well as from local DNSPs (distribution network service providers, or ‘lines companies’) charged with the task of approving any grid-connect arrays connected to their own networks. Enquiries from Pacific-based entities for training courses have also been received. These training courses are a central foundation for the NZPSC, and will be a key offering as the organisation moves forward, not only along the lines of professional development, but also a forum for disseminating safety information as well as opportunities for new product show and tell. Co-founder Barbara Elliston anticipates that professional organisations such as those in the energy management space will work closely with the NZPSC to tap into the energy optimisation markets both in NZ and the Pacific. Watch this space.

Fellow member Bob Sutton was recently named a Fellow of the Solar Council in recognition of his enormous contributions to solar energy research and advances within Australia. After gaining his Bachelor of Electrical Engineering, University of Sydney, in 1963 and (later on) Master of Engineering Solar Council Fellow Bob Sutton (ME) in Electrical Engineering UNSW 1975, Bob commenced his career as lecturer in Engineering at the Tasmanian College of Advanced Education and over the following 13 years maintained a strong interest in solar energy. Along with teaching, he researched heat loss through windows, solar test cells, and heat pumps. Bob also spent eight months in the US researching thermal modelling. His interests extended to working with Environmental Design students, proceeding to architecture, planning and landscaping.

Association involvement Bob helped form the Tasmanian branch of ANZSES and in 1988 was elected President. He was also a member of the Premier’s Energy Advisory Council (Tas). Along with Robert McGregor of the Tasmanian Housing Dept, Bob received an inaugural grant and produced reports for solar features and instrumentation of two north storage wall houses in Hobart, SOLARWALL. In the late 1980s Bob moved to Sydney and soon became active in ANZSES meetings. He co-organised both the Newcastle and Darling Harbour ANZSES conferences. He was elected President of the NSW Branch (now the Sydney Central Chapter) in 2008 and has remained an active participant by providing presentations. Bob has also been a regular attendee at Solar Council conferences, sharing in ideas and research. For many years he has reviewed conference papers and contributed to the committee and helped determine the Wal Read Award. During the five years from 2006 Bob played a key role organising the annual Sustainable House Day.

Solar Progress | 45

Solar Council

Positive Quality

POSITIVE QUALITY

Continuous Quality Assurance

Delivering high solar standards: the Australian Solar Council has established the Positive Quality™ due diligence program undertaken on solar PV panels at the point of manufacture. How many times have you heard these questions: • What solar panel is the best? and • What solar panel manufacturer can I trust? When purchasing a solar system, the quality of the components to be used is a key consideration and can greatly affect return on investment. Choosing which solar panels are the best quality is not so simple when there are hundreds of brands on the Australian market. The best brands have these characteristics: • They are vertically integrated, meaning that they don’t simply assemble

process for everything from the silicon cells to the modules frames and ultimately panel assembly. • They invest heavily in research and development and continually innovate in order to improve their products and processes. • The best brands also use highly automated manufacturing techniques that are conducive to a standard and consistent level of quality, while (in many cases) saving money on manufacturing costs at the same time. • They have at least five years’ history producing solar panels. Having been around for at least this amount of time in what is a relatively

solar panels using other companies’ products, they manufacture their

young industry is testament to a company’s commitment to its own

panels from the ground up. This means they control the production

longevity as well as to its customers.

Solar Gold Times are tough so why is now the best time to upskill? Solar Gold is an industry best practice training and education program. In times like this when the solar PV industry is facing some tough challenges it’s easy to become disillusioned with your future prospects. The options are: Should I do nothing to improve the situation, or take the bull by the horns and get ahead of the pack? Solar Gold is an industry best practice training and education program aimed at assisting you and your business to be healthier and provide stronger consumer confidence. The Solar Gold program is promoted as a pre-qualifier/due diligence to the end user such as Councils – local government and associations,

government authorities, consulting engineers – project engineers and project managers, architects, electricity networks and retailers, and the general public. This provides Solar Gold businesses with access to more prospects, higher profitability and increased sales. Certified installers are promoted via the consumer ‘Find an Installer’ site. As an industry best practice program Solar Gold allows professionals to take pride in their developments and enables consumers to feel optimistic about their solar investment.

SolarPlus SolarPlus provides optimum solar CRM, design, sales and documentation for businesses. One thing is true in the solar industry, things are constantly changing but the priorities of solar consumers are no different. For those in the industry Charles Darwin is still relevant: It is not the strongest species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones who are the most responsive to change. And change we must. More than ever, customers are more discerning and need to feel they have a relationship with a company they can trust; that they have found someone who is not only selling them a power system, but someone who is giving them sound information to make an informed choice.

46 | ISSUE 4 • 2014

They are making a decision based on the value of solar as an investment and a decision on the sale based on the value of the company as a trusted advisor. If you present a solar performance analysis using the CEC radiation tables, you are using data derived from just seven ground-based radiation stations across Australia. Is the data accurate for their site? You might as well shrug your shoulders and say “It could be, it’s a rough guide.” For a customer looking for smart investment, this isn’t a sound basis. SolarPlus helps installers and solar sales companies present themselves as a trusted advisor: • The solar radiation data is at a resolution of 5km2 and the calculations are best practice, to give a high degree of certainty in production forecasts

So how else can you as a consumer choose which panel to buy? You could carry out your own due diligence, maybe even a factory

Yingli Solar was the first PV panel manufacturer to join the program and is receiving daily requests from consumers for their Positive Quality™

visit, but who has the time and resources for that? Australia’s solar

certified modules. Yingli Solar believes the program is delivering confidence

market comprises an aggregate of smaller solar systems which generally

and assurance to the market.

makes it uneconomical to perform any due diligence other than a web search. There is a better way. The Australian Solar Council has established the Positive Quality™ program – a due diligence program undertaken on solar PV panels at the point of manufacture before they are dispatched to the Australian market. For Australian consumers it is equivalent to the ‘Heart Tick’ for the solar industry, a simple way to see that the manufacturer’s product claims have

PQ™ has also attracted attention from government, business and the general public. Projects and tenders are already in the market specifying Positive Quality™ panels as ‘essential’ or ‘highly desirable’. The PQ™ trade mark represents and provides consumers with Certainty, Confidence and Assurance. This is not a one-off audit, test or approval but an ongoing quarterly audit providing consumers with peace of mind and real time quality that they can trust.

been independently checked and verified. We are pleased to announce that two more world-leading manufacturers have joined the PQ™ program: Jinko Solar and JA Solar. The program is now gaining momentum, discussions are underway

If you would like to become a supporter of the Positive Quality™ program or are a PV manufacturer looking to be showcased as an outstanding industry best practice manufacturer, contact Paul Prince on mobile

with more quality manufacturers and we look forward to announcing their

0414 867 802 or email paul@solar.org.au or visit the website

participation soon.

www.solar.org.au

Solar Gold is perfectly suited to any company or individual with an interest in making their business stand out from the rest with increased knowledge, new business and technical skills, high quality workmanship and consumer confidence in them and their business. What lends more confidence: an Accountant or a Chartered Accountant? Solar Gold training is provided online so you can update your skills anywhere and anytime that suits you, which is ideal for those based in remote and country areas. Training modules include solar sales, supply, design and installation and provide 55 CPD points towards maintaining CEC accreditation. Join as either an individual or company – show consumers your commitment to a higher industry standard; become Solar Gold Certified – the best practice standard for solar PV. Contact Paul Prince on 0414 867802 or email paul@solar.org.au. Visit us online at www.solargold.com.au

• SolarPlus makes it easy to compare different systems, brand variation, alternative orientations – to show customers the best value for money • Production estimates are presented in a professional document, featuring your business in the best light possible

• When you present a proposal face-to-face using SolarPlus, the customer sees your company as one with a branded software that is sophisticated, modern and allows immediate sign-off. From first contact through to generation of the System Manual to and hand over, SolarPlus helps your company to present well, reassure customers, and shows your commitment to giving them the best solution. SolarPlus was created by your trusted industry advisor, the Australian Solar Council, in partnership with Solaris. Since 2012, it has evolved to give you the best solar CRM, design, sales and documentation solution for your business. Contact Laurie on 0448 550 270, email laurie@solar.org.au or visit www.solarplus.org.au for a one-month no-obligation trial of SolarPlus for your business.

Solar Progress | 47

ASC Corporate Members Issue 4 – 2014

For full listing of ASC Corporate Members see www.solar.org.au

Diamond Members Greenbank Environmental

Silver Corporate Members

Alternergy Power Systems Australia Pty Ltd

R F Industries Pty Ltd

BYD Europe B.V.

ReneSola

Hareon Solar Technology Co, Ltd

Rheem Australia

Chromagen

DKSH Australia Pty Ltd

Energy Matters

Gold Corporate Members ABB Pty Ltd

Solar Depot Pty Ltd

Solar Freedom Australia Pty Ltd

Enphase Energy Inc ®

Shanghai JA Solar PV Technology Co Ltd

Solar Inception EnviroGroup

Solar World WA Green Energy Trading

Apricus Australia Pty Ltd

Solargain PV Pty Ltd Solari Energy Pty Ltd

Australian Ethical Investments

Trina Solar (Australia) Pty Ltd

Infinity Solar

L&H Solar + Solutions

Yingli Green Energy Australia Pty Ltd

LG Electronics Australia Pty Ltd

SOLIMPEKS SunPower Corporation Australia

Go Energy MaxiSolar Pty Ltd

True Value Solar

Stage a presence in Solar Progress Solar Progress is the flagship publication of the Australian Solar Council. Delving into cutting-edge developments from the nano-scale to big solar, and industry solar advocacy to commentary and all in between, the magazine is created by and for the solar community. It is your industry magazine. A snapshot of Solar Progress: • Four issues a year • Circulated to 5000 solar specialists across Australia • Read by up to 18,000 industry devotees Solar Progress is circulated to manufacturers, distributors, installers, designers, project managers, politicians, engineers, consultants, and the increasingly aware consumer. Firmly positioned on the radar of the entire solar community, Solar Progress is the ideal vehicle in which to promote your company service or product.

Branding boost Solar Progress Online – extend the reach of your marketing budget. Companies signing up now for a full-page advert in Solar Progress will enjoy the benefit of a free online ad in Solar Progress Online, the Solar Council’s news and industry section of www.solar.org.au. Your online ad will make your marketing dollar go further with increased visibility and links directly to your website. With online exposure at 16,000 page views/month, this is an opportunity not to be missed!

To participate, contact ASC Business Development Manager, Joanna Joustra on 0402 938 401 or email Joanna@solar.org.au

Joanna Joustra is your contact for advertising in Solar Progress, now syndicated with the ASC website. With previous leadership positions within the publishing and events industries Joanna has a proven record of establishing highly effective relationships that support growth initiatives. Joanna lives in a solar powered home in an off grid co-operative.

Solar Heroes The Solar Council would like to acknowledge these prominent supporters whose generous donations have contributed to the strength of the Save Solar campaign. Visit www.savesolar.com.au to find out more and see the RET feature on pages 6 and 7.

SAVE MONEY. SAVE SOLAR.

/ Perfect Welding / Solar Energy / Perfect Charging

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Be different. Be profitable. With the Fronius SnapINverter generation we are setting new standards in securing system uptime, optimising the cost of solar energy and providing flexible, future proof platforms. Available now: Fronius Galvo - Manage your energy (1.5 - 3.1 kW, 1-phase), Fronius Symo - Smarter, lighter, more flexible (3.0 - 20.0 kW, 3-phase), www.fronius.com.au Coming soon: Fronius Primo, Fronius Eco, Fronius Energy Package