So what’s all the fuss with gross and net metering? Here in Australia and especially on the Gold Coast we are perfectly situated to take full advantage of the power constantly being produced by the sun. It is a little sad that more has not been done in this area to see solar power becoming more viable for the average person.
Germany is the world leader in the uptake of solar power and the amount of solar power they can actually harness with a solar panel is just over half of what we enjoy here. The reason they are the world leaders, even when they are not in the blessed position of being “the sunburnt country” as we are, is that the German government for years has had the foresight in seeing that renewable power is worth investing in. What they offer is for every kW of solar power produced the Government pays a premium price for, making the substantial investment in solar panels and solar technology not only a great choice from the clean power perspective but also from the financial investment side – the solar power system can be paid off within a few years!
Here in Australia the states are slowly catching on to the idea of feed in tariffs, for example Queensland has introduced a net metering feed in tariff. What this tariff means is that Energex puts a meter on your meter board which only reads the solar power you produce and are not using, so ONLY the power you actually feed back into the electricity grid will you receive the premium rate of 44c per kWh for, or up to 52c per kWh if your with AGL.
The Energy providers in Queensland still offer a gross metering option to customers producing solar power, but you are only paid your standard kWh rate for all this power – 17 to 19c a kWh. A pointless option really if you are in Queensland but great if you are in NSW, as they have just released a gross feed in tariff of 60c per kWh – this in layman’s terms means that you would be paid 60c per kWh for every bit of the solar power you produce, effectively saving you thousands!
Hopefully soon on the Gold Coast North of the NSW border our government will see the true benefits in following NSW and Germany’s approach in paying a premium rate for ALL renewable power produced through gross feed-in tariffs.
September 25th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
good site gxrkno
January 6th, 2009 at 2:27 am
Even though the energy retailer is only gives the same rate as what they charge, I’m not sure that it’s a pointless exercise. It may be better than the upfront and ongoing costs of batteries and associated equipment to store power for night-time use. You don’t need batteries if you’re grid connected. ALthough, I’m not sure what the grid connection costs are. ALthough, it would be satisfying to go off grid completely (with batts for nighttime) and then you wouldn’t have to pay their meterman, activation fees, billing charges and all that crap.
I like how you can make money buy returning excess under the home solar arrangement thingo if you’re in the right state.
Have a generator or some source of power for backup in case you get no sun for ages. Shit-fed TEG?
January 7th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
It is a nice thought to be totally independant from the grid, but the reality is it is a very un-economical option if the gird is available to you. This is due to the fact that large battery banks as required in stand alone systems cost thousands of dollars, and only have a life span of 10 to 15 years.
Grid connect solar power is the best of both worlds – solar power used during the day with any excess power fed to the grid – and at 44c per kWh, which you just buy back again at a standard tariff rate after dark!