Australia breaks record again for rooftop solar installs in November

Back in April this year Green Energy Markets noted that the rooftop solar sector was staging what looked to be a second boom for 2017.  Since then installation numbers each month continued at a solid pace but were still below the all time records set in mid 2012.

In October this year we managed to break 100MW of capacity installs, a major milestone but still below the June 2012 record (this is using the STC creation date as our measuring stick, see bottom for further explanation).

Then last month the industry managed to install 120MW, knocking off the record set in June 2012.

That 2012 record was fuelled by a rush by householders to get in before the Queensland government closed eligibility for its 44 cent premium feed-in tariff, and also before the federal government cut back the amount of STC rebate certificates it provided. After that point solar capacity installs trended down.

For much of 2016 solar installs were below 60MW and January of that year was truly awful at less than 45MW. One would never have imagined we’d soon be within reach of the levels the industry managed when feed-in tariffs and STC rebates were vastly higher than what they are now.

Kilowatts of solar PV STCs created monthly by state (by STC creation date)

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Source: Green Energy Markets Solar Report. Please note the capacity illustrated is based on the date at which STCs are created in the Clean Energy Regulator’s registry, which is slightly different to the date the system would have been installed.

Our April article explained a series of tailwinds that had supported the revival in the solar sales including:

  • Most importantly the large rise in wholesale power prices which has hit retail power bills, particularly for businesses;
  • Excitement around new battery storage products such as the Powerwall 2; and
  • Conservative politicians and the media’s poorly informed, pro fossil fuel commentary about threats to power reliability and prices from renewable energy – which only made people even more anxious to take power supply into their own hands through use of solar.

This was supported by the solar industry managing to make further cuts to the cost of solar systems. Those cost cuts allowed the industry to achieve strong sales even though government carbon abatement incentives were hit by:

  1. STC rebates being awarded for a year less of generation (down from 15 to 14 years);
  2. A mid year collapse in STC spot prices. For 2 years STCs had hovered between $39.70 and $40. Then between 22 May and 21 July they lost a quarter of their value to hit $30. A recovery only came in September and they have only just recently recovered to $38 a few days ago.

The cost cuts by the solar industry have also made solar a cost competitive alternative to business consumers, not just householders. So far this year commercial-sized systems represent 28 per cent of all capacity installed. Back in 2012 they made up just 3 per cent. This is notable because business customers will often face much lower energy-related charges that can be a third to a half lower than residential retail energy charges.

This record breaking year for solar PV illustrates that the technology is now delivering on its promise. Australian electricity consumers that buy power from the grid now face some of the highest electricity prices in the world, and also the most emission intensive. But if they buy it via a Solar PV system it is some of the lowest cost in the world and with no carbon emissions at all.

Government support programs for solar PV used to be a high cost way to reduce carbon pollution.  But thanks to the wonders of learning by doing effects they are now one of the most cost-effective.

Tristan Edis is Director – Analysis & Advisory with Green Energy Markets. Green Energy Markets assists clients make informed investment, trading and policy decisions in the areas of clean energy and carbon abatement. Follow on Twitter: @TristanEdis

Note: The data we report above on the amount of capacity installed is derived from the Clean Energy Regulator’s small-scale technology certificate (STCs) registry. This data on capacity installs per month is based upon the date that the STC was created in the registry. This is technically not the actual date that the solar system was installed, with the STC always created after the system is installed and often this will occur with a lag of a month or more after installation.  We use the STC creation date as a proxy for installation date rather than the installation date itself because the registry does not make available data on installation dates for systems associated with STCs. While the regulator does publish data on capacity by actual installation date this is only released periodically and with substantial lags. The use of creation date means our data on capacity installs will misalign by date with that published by the Australian Photovoltaic Institute which uses installation date.

Comments

13 responses to “Australia breaks record again for rooftop solar installs in November”

  1. Joe Avatar
    Joe

    While the sun keeps shining and the energy sharks keep gouging then solar installs will continue to march on.

  2. MaxG Avatar
    MaxG

    My old song: the people are stupid… anyone with some decent grey matter can figure by now that PV is the way to go; more grey matter, and adding a battery is the way to go. The rest of the people would be better off supporting renewables than bashing their fellow peers, which is simply do what they would do if they only could: getting rid of the leeches.

    1. Robert Westinghouse Avatar
      Robert Westinghouse

      Well Said Max…Not really rocket science, but that means the LNP only want to rape us with high Energy prices….that is obvious and not rocket science either……

    2. Stewart Rogers Avatar
      Stewart Rogers

      Adding a battery = less grey matter. Have a good read of Ronald Brackel’s posts. He shows that batteries consistently reduce the ROI in nearly every situation. Wait a few years. You’re better off buying a bigger solar system.

      1. MaxG Avatar
        MaxG

        I do not believe a blanket statement like this holds true. I am pulling a median 11kWh out of my 20kWh battery per day (over a range of 7 to 17kWh/day). This equates to say $3 per day, or $1,100 per year. It cost me 10 grant; ROI = 9 years. Then add the non-monetary value of energy security, the middle finger up in the air at least once week for the leeches … when I add the $500 connection fee per year we are looking at an ROI of 6 years. Works for me.

        1. Stewart Rogers Avatar
          Stewart Rogers

          If you can go offgrid it can work but it seems you got a crazily cheap price on your battery compared to most.

  3. PVE Avatar
    PVE

    This is welcome good news and means there are fewer and fewer Australian households and businesses that pay our very high electricity prices relative to other countries. I do feel however for renters and for people who can’t afford the upfront cost of solar power. When flying out of Perth airport, you see so many acres of industry warehouses in areas like Kewdale and Canning Vale with no solar panels covering them. Why not use these empty roof spaces to help poorer households and renters gain access to cheaper solar power through blockchain technology such as that offered by PowerLedger?

    1. Stewart Rogers Avatar
      Stewart Rogers

      A lot of renters are starting to get solar. I’m a landlord and will be organizing solar for an extra $12/week rent. Given a 3kW system can save much more than that it works well for the tenant and the landlord.

      1. Mike Westerman Avatar
        Mike Westerman

        Sure … it’s just common sense. I’ve split a $120 per month saving with my tennant on a system that still has a payback for me of under 4y.

      2. Mike Shackleton Avatar
        Mike Shackleton

        I’m planning to install a Matter system on my investment property rooftop. Any kWh the tenant consumes from the rooftop they pay to your account at a rate equivalent to their supply rate (you can set it lower to encourage direct consumption and help them make a saving) and any that is exported to the grid is credited to your account at the FiT rate. It runs through Telstra’s IOT network.

    2. Mike Shackleton Avatar
      Mike Shackleton

      AGL has just started offering a product (in NSW) where you pay a varying annual subscription for so many kW of capacity in a large scale solar farm. You then get a credit on your bill for electricity that exceeds the cost of that subscription by about 50% (from memory). Sounds like a good business model – AGL essentially gets cheap finance for solar farms, and customers who are either renting or have unsuitable roof space can gain the benefits of owning rooftop solar.

  4. Robert Westinghouse Avatar
    Robert Westinghouse

    Well done Australian and Australian business. Keep buying PV and Batteries. Give the LNP and their BIG POWER bedfellows the finger. My extra battery will be here in 2 weeks….just in time for the NSW coal power stations to fail at Christmas dinner….Merry Christmas…I hope Gran can make it she has no PV or batteries….I am seriously trying to get her to live with us…at least she will survive another few year.

    1. DoRightThing Avatar
      DoRightThing

      Every PV installation is a poke in the eye to the FF industry, and worth it for that alone!
      Free energy, clean air and a habitable planet is just a bonus…

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