More households and small businesses in regional Australia are choosing to make the switch to renewable energy.
New Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme postcode data released today by the Clean Energy Regulator reflects a geographically diverse spread of installations, particularly in suburban, regional and rural areas of the Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia.
The Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme provides incentives for households and businesses to install small-scale power generation or reduce electricity use through energy efficient hot water systems. It works by creating a market for renewable energy certificates.
The postcodes of Bundaberg (Qld), Werribee and Hoppers Crossing (Vic) have accumulated the highest number of small-scale renewable energy installations since the scheme began in 2001, each reaching around 17 000 installations as at 1 September 2017. The average size of these installations is 5 kW. The Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme encourages systems up to 100 kW in size.
In fact, over the last 10 years, 23 per cent more Australians have embraced rooftop solar. That’s one in five homes and businesses now generating their own renewable energy and reducing carbon emissions through rooftop solar.
Last month, Australia hit a milestone of 6000 megawatt capacity across 2.8 million small-scale installations of renewable energy systems such as solar PV systems, solar water heaters and air source heat pumps. That’s enough to power 1.8 million homes.
For more information on how to participate, visit the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme.