The Alternative Technology Association (ATA) today strongly welcomed the Victorian Government’s announcement of a feed-in-tariff for large-scale solar power installations and the state’s new target of generating 5 per cent of its electricity from large solar by 2020. The Government’s announcement is likely to see the contribution of renewable energy in Victoria grow to 25% by 2020.

Ian Porter, the ATA’s chief executive, said: “With the national Renewable Energy Target (RET) now acting as bedrock for a renewable energy future, we are glad to see individual states beginning to identify their niches and looking for growth in specific renewable energy technologies.”

“The Victorian Government’s 2020 and interim 2014 solar targets, on top of the existing RET, should catalyse a strong investment in large-scale solar. This will complement investments in wind power already under way and start to give us a strong and diverse clean energy mix.” Mr Porter said.

“And the feed-in-tariff represents an excellent policy tool for supporting a specific technology like solar, as it also does for smaller-scale investments in rooftop photovoltaics.”

In congratulating the Victorian Government for this important step, the ATA noted that the challenge was now on for other states and territories to emulate Victoria’s approach. “For example, the South Australian Government has been looking at a new major wind power zone, and Queensland has launched its Renewable Energy Plan. These initiatives seek to leverage off the RET, but without the additional financial incentive offered by a large scale feed-in-tariff,” Mr Porter said.

“We need to move to a significant expansion of both large and small-scale renewable energy technologies as soon as we can, with the greatest possible diversity of sources and engagement of people and their communities. This will unlock our ingenuity and lower the cost of this vital transition.”

With this in mind, the ATA also strongly supported the Victorian Government’s announcement of a working group to develop further incentives for medium-scale renewable energy installations.

“We still have a gap in incentives for community-scale renewable energy such as Hepburn Wind’s 4MW community-owned wind farm in Victoria,” Mr Porter said.

“Community renewable energy projects are another great way of engaging communities in the climate challenge and will be a strong part of a diverse and resilient energy future.”

Source: Alternative Technology Association.

Power-hungry homes filled with TV's, video games and computers are being sucked dry of dollars because appliances are left on standby rather than being switched off when not in use.

Electricians warn some big households can waste hundreds of dollars a year by not manually turning off appliances or switching them off at the power point.

Televisions, DVD players, stereo systems, microwave ovens and cordless phones are common power guzzlers.

Electrician Phillip Gear, of Ecomonitor, said a typical home had dozens of appliances capable of constantly drawing power. "If you turn something off and still see a clock or a light on, it is still consuming some energy and costing you. Some homes are wasting an enormous amount of money because of pure negligence." Mr Gear said.

"They have a ridiculous number of items - three or four TVs. The kids have all the bells and whistles, but they are only turning off with a remote control. A lot of new TVs on the market can be a trap, because they don't have a manual off button."

Small amounts of standby power combined across multiple devices can amount to about 10 per cent of total electricity bills, depending on the efficiency level of the model being used.

Mr Gear said the problem was worsening as the number of devices accumulating in average households continues to mushroom.

Efficiency experts advise consumers to completely unplug electronic appliances when they are used only occasionally or during holidays, and to pay attention to energy rating labels on products.

Article: Karen Collier.
Source: Herald Sun (14th August 2010). 

Victorian households face electricity price rises of up to 50 per cent - between $600 and $800 a year on average - to cover soaring costs and pollution taxes.

The savage blow will push average annual bills for typical families towards $2,000 by 2013. Households have already endured price rises of 20 to 30 per cent in the past two years.

The higher cost of power generation, poles and wiring upgrades, the rollout of smart meters and uncertainty over an emissions-trading scheme are blamed.

"A world of pain is coming" St. Vincent De Paul Society energy spokesman Gavin Duffy said. Industry analyst Simon Oaten warned the cost of coal and gas fuels used to generate electricity were escalating dramatically.

Contracts being renegotiated at higher prices in NSW and Queensland would feed into the national pricing market and flow through to Victoria.

Mr Oaten, of Shaw Stockbroking, said other factors behind rocketing electricity bills included:

The Brumby Government's plans to slash carbon emissions by 2020 and reduce output at the coal-fired Hazelwood plant;

The electricity industry's planned $42 billion investment to rebuild ageing infrastructure; and

A higher price for natural gas from the north-west shelf feeding in to gas-fired power generation.

"We haven't seen the full impact on retail (prices) yet," Mr Oaten said.

He said the cost of coal represented 30 to 35 per cent of total generation costs - and the international market price had doubled.

EnergyWatch general manager Ben Polis blamed the Federal Government's promised - and now postponed - emissions-trading scheme for some of the price rises inflicted on consumers.

Electricity generators had factored in a price on carbon to protect their profits, and consumers had been paying more despite the ETS not being imposed, Mr Polis said.

Electricity bills sent to households are made up mainly of the cost of generation and the cost of transmission. Retailer charges comprise about 10 - 15 per cent of the total. Mr Duffy said the public's limited understanding of their bills opened the door to potential profiteering.

Article: Mark Dunn and Karen Collier.
Source: Herald Sun (14th August 2010).