3 days ago
Calls to boost renewables for Sydney
Samantha Donovan: It's estimated about a third of Australian households have solar panels on their roofs, but fly over a major population centre and you'll see plenty of empty roof space that could be generating power. Now there's a push for the nation's biggest city to exploit that resource. A new report by the think tank the Committee for Sydney has found 75% of the city's energy needs could be generated by putting solar panels on commercial roof space, and that power could help bring down prices for renters and those who live in dwellings where solar systems can't be installed. Isabel Moussalli has more.
Isabel Moussalli: Sydney resident Noah Fowler used to work for a solar company, but renting an apartment means rooftop solar is out of reach for him. So you can imagine the frustration with getting high electricity bills.
Noah Fowler: I know it's a no-brainer, but when it comes to landlords or it comes to Strata, there's just so many different hurdles that pop up. Also, lack of real estate doesn't make it a simple solution. So, yeah, it's kind of a trickier one when you're coming from an industry where you're telling people to do it, but coming home and not being able to have it, I'm just like, ugh.
Isabel Moussalli: Boosting that access is the goal of a new report by think tank Committee for Sydney, which was developed with local energy distributors and consultants.
Sam Kernaghan: Sydney has massive renewable energy potential that's virtually untapped. Most importantly, there's a real disconnect in terms of equity of access to that renewable energy opportunity.
Isabel Moussalli: That's report author Sam Kernaghan.
Sam Kernaghan: A renewable energy zone is a coordinated way of delivering new generation and transmission in regional New South Wales and across the eastern seaboard. And we took that same idea, we took that inspiration to apply to metropolitan Sydney. We think there's a real opportunity for Sydney to generate much, much more energy than it is today, and the distribution network is already in place here in Sydney. So there's an opportunity to take advantage of existing infrastructure.
Isabel Moussalli: He explains about 30% of Sydney-siders have rooftop solar. With state and federal incentives, that number is growing. But the report found if every residential and industrial rooftop had solar panels, that would meet 75% of Sydney's annual energy needs.
Sam Kernaghan: So that's seven times what Sydney's currently generating. We may not get there in full. 100% coverage is definitely a stretch. But this finding shows what's possible.
Isabel Moussalli: It's made a range of recommendations, including improving access to community batteries and trialling new models for energy generation and storage.
Sam Kernaghan: We looked at incentives, particularly for industrial landlords, to oversize their solar on rooftops because currently they only install about 10% to 20%. So things like risk underwriting mechanisms, again, to change their behaviour, we ask them to invest some of their own capital. But to get this going, we also need something as simple as an urban renewable energy roundtable, a way of bringing together all the key stakeholders.
Isabel Moussalli: Tania Urmee is a professor in the School of Engineering and Energy at Murdoch University. She commends the report's focus on energy equity, like improving access for rentals, apartments and low-income households. But she says reaching this goal will require more infrastructure and boosting the workforce.
Tania Urmee: I think there's a lot for our government to do, that policy is needed. And we could be the powerhouse in the world for renewable energy and we should take those opportunities as soon as we can.
Samantha Donovan: Professor Tania Urmee from Murdoch Uni. That report from Isabel Moussalli.
