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Australia's 500,000 solar homes

In a report released yesterday at the UN climate negotiations in Durban, the Clean Energy Council of Australia has revealed that more than 500,000 homes in Australia feature photovoltaic systems.

The report looked at renewable electricity generation across the board and revealed that power for around four million homes was produced in 2011. This means that the country is well on the way to meet its goal of producing 20 percent of its power through renewable sources by 2020.

The progress of photovoltaics was outstanding, with a cumulative total of over one gigawatt (GW), being installed between October 1, 2010 and September 30, 2011. There are now 35 times more photovoltaic systems installed in Australia than three years ago.

The progress of photovoltaics in Australia has mostly taken the form of many small, residential installations. Large power plants are rare but have been given a "kick start" by the Federal Government’s Solar Flagships project.

The Federal Government is also having an impact on encouraging residential installations, through its Renewable Energy Credit (REC) multiplier scheme, which subsidizes systems smaller than 1.5 kilowatts (kW). Furthermore, the recently-passed carbon tax will increase the cost of coal-generated electricity, providing a further incentive for going solar.

If you want to know more about the solar energy produced in Australia, read PV Magazine's full story.

Love Energy provides solar solutions for residential and commercial project in three state. Contact us in South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland.