Recent media debate around the Federal Government’s Renewable Energy Target (RET) scheme and solar hot water heaters have caused uproar in the solar hot water industry. Federal Government’s RET scheme aims to generate 20 per cent of Australia’s electricity supply from renewable sources by 2020.
Those with vested interests in the commercial-scale renewable sector have criticised the solar hot water industry and dismissed its merits in contributing towards the Federal Government’s RET scheme.
The demand for household solar hot water heaters has been increasing and may have contributed to Renewable Energy Certificate (RECs) decrease in price. The commercial renewable sector fears that this will delay investments in costly commercial projects for renewable energy such as wind farms.
Les Patterson, General Manager of Dux Hot Water , is astonished by the claims made against solar hot water and commented “We are disappointed with the misleading claims made about solar hot water in the RET scheme. The RET system is a market-based mechanism that does not favour specific technologies, but allows the market to choose technologies which are reliable producers of renewable energy, at the lowest possible cost.
“Solar water heaters are an immediate, low-cost and very successful means of saving energy, reducing household energy costs and reducing carbon emissions,” he said.
Mr Patterson agreed that the low RECs price posed an immediate issue for commercial scale renewable investments, but believes that holding back the growth of other low cost renewable technologies is not the way to address the problem.
“Larger renewable projects such as wind farms and hydro generation plants will most certainly aid Australia in achieving environmental targets for 2020, but these projects are often expensive and time lags for the construction phase mean that results will not be seen for some time. It is the current wave of solar hot water growth that offers immediate energy savings for consumers and reduced carbon emissions to achieve Australia’s environmental targets,” said Mr Patterson.
The wholesale REC price has always been volatile since its inception and was at a much lower rate in late 2006 (well below $15 per certificate). The REC price managed to bounce back to a value of over $50 per certificate despite fears at the time. While solar hot water has experienced growth many observers believe that RECs prices will increase again, underpinning renewed investment for large scale renewable projects.
In an average household in NSW a solar water heater will help to save over 3 tonnes of carbon emissions per year - equivalent to taking one car off the road each year. Solar water heaters not only have the ability to reduce energy usage by up to 70 per cent, but can achieve electricity running cost savings of $300 to $700 annually.
Mr Patterson added “The high number of RECs created for solar hot water heaters is indicative of how important and successful solar hot water is, as an economic and immediate solution to achieving energy saving targets for Australia,” Mr Patterson concluded.