Solar Grid Parity Seen in Some Parts of Australia as Solar Panel Costs Reduce

 As the local and international price of solar panels plunges it is not surprising to hear talk about the country reaching grid parity faster than anticipated. From 2008 to 2010 solar module prices have decreased by 50% and before this year closes it is expected that they will decrease even further.

The continued reduction in cost is primarily because of the higher solar panel efficiency rating the best panels now have, reduced manufacturing costs due to increased demand, new technology and economies of scale.

Although nationally Australia may not reach grid parity until 2020, some parts of the country will achieve that much earlier, and indeed in some regions the price of solar produced electricity is already on par with that produced by coal.

Andrew Blakers, the director of the centre for sustainable energy systems at the Australian National University, announced recently that with prices being paid for solar PV there are areas in the state of New South Wales where it is even slightly cheaper to produce electricity from solar power sources rather coal.''If you look at the prices being paid today, we have already reached grid parity in a lot of places except Melbourne and Hobart.''

The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal said that thousands of households and small business are still lined up for the $1.9 billion of solar bonuses,and once completed the renewable energy capacity of the country will spike significantly, adding to the current 371 megawatts of generated power installed to date under the scheme.

Australia has the capabilities to reach grid parity sooner than 2020 as more government support for research and development takes place in the form of the Emerging Renewable Energy Fund, Australian Renewable Energy Agency, and the $10 billion Finance Corporation; all funded by the planned carbon tax package that the government will soon implement.

Getting close to grid parity as soon as possible is critical for the country to reach it’s challenging renewable energy targets by 2020, hence why so much effort and funding is being put towards it becoming a reality.