Oceania

The Australian supermarket giant is issuing green bonds to fund the development of low-carbon supermarkets and the installation of solar at its stores and distribution centers.

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and Adelaide-based laser supplier Lastek are developing equipment and procedures to accurately measure the performance of multi-junction solar cells with the help of an LED-based solar simulator.

In a recent briefing on Australia’s renewables investment boom, BIS Oxford Economics estimates that solar and wind will attract AUD $20 billion ($14.2 billion) of private investment in fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2019, spread across more than 70 projects. But the consultants warn that investment will slow beyond 2020, pointing to the upcoming Australian federal election as critically important for the future of the country’s renewables pipeline.

Solar households that choose to participate in the trial in New South Wales will receive direct cash payments of up to AUD $135 ($95) per year, depending on the size of their battery systems.

With solar panels already installed on dozens of its buildings, the city of Sydney has upped the ante by vowing to source 100% of its electricity needs from solar PV and wind. The commitment was endorsed by city council last week, with a new 100% renewable electricity contract to be negotiated in the coming months.

Green hydrogen has been exported from Australia to Japan, under a trial executed by researchers from JXTG, Japan’s largest petroleum conglomerate, using Queensland University of Technology’s cutting-edge Redlands Research Facility. The Queensland government has also announced AUD 250,000 ($177,000) in funding toward the establishment of a renewable hydrogen production pilot plant.

Australia’s Coalition government has announced funding to support up to 50 off-grid and fringe-of-grid feasibility studies that will investigate whether building a microgrid is cost-effective and whether existing off-grid capabilities can be upgraded with more up-to-date technology.

A new study from the Australian National University shows that a series of pumped storage projects currently in the pipeline across five states could triple Australia’s storage capacity and pave the way for more solar and wind.

The Victorian government is giving smaller solar installers eight months to sign up to the Clean Energy Council’s Solar Retailer Code of Conduct if they want to qualify for the Solar Homes program. For larger retailers, the deadline to become Approved Solar Retailers is July.

Toyota Australia will transform its former manufacturing site in West Melbourne into a renewable energy hub to produce green hydrogen with the help of funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). In other hydrogen-related news, researchers at UNSW Sydney with partners H2Store have received a $3.5 million investment from Providence Asset Group to develop a hydrogen residential storage.