The APVI represents Australia in the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Program (IEA PVPS). This report is part of Australia’s contribution to this program.

This report is recognised as a leading publication for tracking progress in the PV sector in Australia.

The 2019 report can be found here

This is Australia’s annual contribution to the International Energy Agency’s “Snapshot of Global PV Markets” that is compiled under the Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme. 

The Snapshot of Global PV Markets reports on the global uptake by region and by country, according to capacity and electricity generation.

Australia’s contribution can be accessed here

The APVI represents Australia in the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Program (IEA PVPS). This report is part of Australia’s contribution to this program.

This report is recognised as a leading publication for tracking progress in the PV sector in Australia.

The 2018 report can be found here.

This guide and associated short course have been developed by GSES to inform other tradespeople how to work safely near existing solar systems.

It can be downloaded for free here.

Currently there are over 2 million houses in Australia with a grid connected solar (photovoltaic) system on their roof and interconnected to the grid. There are approximately 6,000 electricians accredited by the Clean Energy Council to install these systems. These “solar electricians” have been trained in the safe installation and operation of these systems.

Over the last 20 years standards have been developed to allow for the safe installation of these systems,however these standards have been updated regularly to reflect changes required due to the rapid changesand growth of the industry. The result is that a system installed in 2000, that is still operating, will have been installed differently to what is being installed today. Some of the differences will be the type of cable that has been installed between the solar array and the inverter (the inverter converts the solar power to a.c. power that feeds into the building and onto the grid), the number and type of switch disconnectors (isolators), the signage and whether the solar array has been bonded to earth.

This guide details the variations in solar system installations a tradesperson might encounter when working near a solar system, distribution boards and switchboards. The variations often relate to signage, cabling requirements and isolation/protection requirements. For all tradespeople it will be important to be aware of where the solar array is installed, where the inverter is installed, the associated cabling between the array and inverter and the associated switches/isolators. Electricians who have not undertaken solar training need to appreciate that a grid connected solar system is a separate generation system in parallel with the exiting grid and that cables associated with the system must not to be used for any other electrical connection and only be used for the interconnection of the grid connected PV system.

This report estimates the total potential for rooftop solar to be 179 gigawatts with an annual energy output of 245 terawatt-hours.

It was produced in collaboration with the University of New South Wales and the Institute for Sustainable Futures, and can be downloaded here. The analysis was undertaken by Jessie Copper, Mike Roberts and Anna Bruce, Australia’s experts in solar potential spatial analysis and creators of the APVI SunSPoT Tool.

What do these figures mean?

The potential annual output from rooftop solar is greater than current consumption in the national electricity market (just under 200 TWh per year).Australia is currently using less than 5 per cent of the potential capacity for rooftop solar.

Where is the greatest potential for rooftop solar?

• Around half of the unused potential for rooftop solar is in residential zones.

• While most would think of dense urban centres in capital cities for rooftop solar, the second largest potential (34 GW) is in primary / rural production zones.

• Commercial and industrial zones together have the potential for 26 GW of rooftop solar.

In interpreting these results, it is important to understand that planning zones do not correspond neatly with building types. There are commercial buildings inside residential, mixed, industrial and primary production zones. Consequently, some of the capacity inside primary and rural production zones is likely to be commercial and industrial buildings.

As a first study, there will be further data that will refine this estimate in time– and beyond refinements of the APVI methods for factors such as shading there will be rooftops that are not actually suitable for solar (e.g. due to structural integrity issues).

Our study does not suggest Australia could or should source all its power from rooftop solar. But noting these caveats, our study does indicate that even with the strong recent growth, Australia has only just scratched the surface of the potential. There are still many barriers to rooftop solar which if they were to be addressed by governments, investors and communities could unlock a large volume of clean energy.

Maps of the rooftop solar potential for each Local Government Area are available on the Australian Renewable Mapping Initiative (AREMI) and APVI Map website.

This report is a global snapshot of PV developments that is compiled by the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme.

It reports on the global uptake by region and by country, according to capacity and electricity generation. It can be accessed here.

The APVI represents Australia in the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Program (IEA PVPS). This report is part of Australia’s contribution to this program.

This report is recognised as a leading publication for tracking progress in the PV sector in Australia.

The media release summary can be found here.

This APVA report presents the results of a case study undertaken into technical issues posed by growing PV penetrations in the distribution networks of Magnetic Island and the adjacent city of Townsville in North Queensland, Australia, and their management by the local network utility, Ergon Energy.

High and growing penetrations of mainly small, distributed PV systems exist within Ergon Energy’s distribution network. Magnetic Island is one such example of high PV penetration with peak PV penetration (PV generation contribution to meeting load) of 34% for the whole island during September 2012. The majority of the PV systems on Magnetic Island are small scale (< 10 kW) residential systems, with several larger systems of up to 22 kW and one 100 kW system at the public Solar Skate Park. Magnetic Island and Townsville Solar City provide a particularly useful case study as there has been extensive metering of the PV systems installed under the Solar Cities program; a number of trials have been conducted relevant to managing high penetrations of PV, some of which are described in this case study; and Townsville has hosted a number of high profile PV systems.

While the PV output does not coincide with peak loads on Magnetic Island (driven by residential air-conditioning on summer evenings) PV does contribute to overall reduced loading on the network and, importantly, deloads the network during daylight hours on these peak days, that tend to be very sunny. To date, some voltage issues have arisen in high impedance sections of the network but these have been successfully resolved through network balancing, adjustment and minor augmentation. Despite some concerns about the potential for PV system islanding, no instances have yet been recorded. Minor reverse power flow has not caused any network operation problems, while inverters have not produced significant harmonics nor caused power factor issues.

This case study, prepared by UNSW with the active involvement of Ergon Energy and funded by ASI and ARENA, is the third in a series of case studies aimed to give Australian and international audiences insight into some of the key technical challenges and management options to facilitate high PV penetrations in Australian electricity networks. These case studies are being undertaken as a part of a broader ARENA supported research project entitled “Support for Australian participation in an international RD&D collaboration on Photovoltaics – IEA PVPS Task 14: High penetration of photovoltaic systems in electricity grids”.

A key objective of this research project is to facilitate the integration of higher PV penetrations in Australia and internationally. To coincide with an international Task 14 meeting in Australia, a high PV penetration workshop with local and international speakers will be held in Sydney on Tuesday 26 November 2013. Please contact greg@apva.org.au for further details.