Australia can show the way You might not think it, given the decade of political climate wars, but Australia is the world leader in terms of solar electricity produced per person.
Category: Solar Energy
He couldn’t tell the truth before he was elected how could he be expected to tell it before this recent election? Energy prices were going up despite the Ukraine not because of it.
On 30 April, less than a month before the election I penned this piece, about the foreshadowed spike in energy prices, about to hit Australian consumers: Coalition promises higher electricity costs! I wrote it because it was quite clear that the Coalition were not going to come clean before the election and it was a known major factor that was going to hit Australian businesses and consumers as winter came on.
Victoria has powered its electricity grid with 50 per cent renewable energy for the first time, well ahead of state government projections for the transition to clean energy.
Victoria’s grid runs on 50 per cent renewable energy for first time
As Techdirt reported, Elon Musk has already put up a solar power generating facility at the Hospital del Nino in San Juan, with a Powerwall storage capacity so that the electricity will still be there at night. Musk believes that this model could replace Puerto Rico’s old, destroyed power plants.
Source: Solar: Elon Musk already got a San Juan Hospital running & more to Come
As the debate rages over how to bring rein in rising energy prices, a new poll shows the majority of Australians see solar batteries as the key to cheaper and more reliable energy.
MINNEAPOLIS — A new report from the University of Minnesota’s Energy Transition Lab shows adding energy storage is becoming a cost effective way to meet electricity demand in the state.
Source: Report: Solar plus storage can beat natural gas | Minnesota | postbulletin.com
Tesla has begun taking orders for its transformative new solar roof, the final piece for Elon Musk’s grand clean-energy ambition – combining solar power, home batteries, and electric cars.
Source: Tesla’s solar roof sets Elon Musk’s grand clean-energy ambitions into motion
Tesla has begun selling its Solar Roof tiles as it tries to revolutionize solar powered homes, with a promise of an infinite warranty that protects the til
Source: You Can Now Buy Tesla’s Solar Roof Tiles (If You’re Very Rich) | IFLScience
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – For the first time, on the day of March 23, 40% …
Source: 40% of California Grid Power from Solar, Sometimes Costs less than Nothing | Informed Comment
Once largely confined to the sunny Southwest, utility-scale solar power plants are now being built everywhere from Minnesota to Alabama to Maine. Aided by plunging costs and improving technologies, these facilities are expected to provide a big boost to U.S. solar energy production.
Source: Northern Lights: Large-Scale Solar Power Is Spreading Across the U.S. – Yale E360
They are only starting to gain a foothold in the Australian market, but could batteries provide a near overnight solution to the energy woes that have hit South Australia and risk spreading east?
Source: Tesla says its batteries could fix Australia’s energy problems in 100 days
After years of failed promises, Victoria is on the cusp of getting its first large-scale solar power stations.
Most of us have had the nasty experience of opening up a power bill that’s more expensive than you expected. But imagine how frustrating this is for those people who’ve put solar on their roof – only to find out their power bill is just as expensive as ever.
Source: The great solar power scam
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Although Donald Trump has complained about America’s failing airports, bridges and …
Source: All Dutch Electric Trains are Wind-Powered & other Advances Trump’s US will Miss out On
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Bloomberg released a new report this week with some startling findings …
Source: Sorry, Trump, you can’t bring back Coal when Solar costs half as Much
All over the country, the Kochs and utilities have been blocking solar initiatives — but nowhere more so than in Florida
Source: The Koch Brothers’ Dirty War on Solar Power | Rolling Stone
Australian Aboriginal-owned company AllGrid Energy has launched WattGrid, a new 10kWh solar energy storage system it says is around 30 per cent cheaper than Tesla Powerwall.
Source: Aboriginal-owned energy company one-upping Tesla | News | Eco-Business | Asia Pacific
An Australian company says its new solar thermal technology could produce power more cheaply than coal
West Australia energy minister says the future is in solar, noting that it is cheap, democratic, and was likely to displace the state’s ageing coal generators. And this man used to head the IPA!
Source: W.A. says solar is the future as it prepares to dump coal : Renew Economy
A new transparent solar cell that could be used as a window was recently developed by researchers at Michigan State University.
This is a feat that was once thought to be impossible, because traditional solar panels absorb light and turn it into energy, but a transparent surface is not typically able to absorb light.
To make a transparent solar cell, researchers opted for a different system called a transparent luminescent solar concentrator (TLSC), which contains organic salts that absorb specific non-visible wavelengths of ultraviolet and infrared light. This light is then guided towards traditional photovoltaic solar cells which are able to trap the energy and convert it into electricity.
Not only can this material be used for windows, but it can also be used for displays on electronic devices, giving them another source of power and potentially extending their energy life significantly.
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