Australia Solar Costs Could Rise 50 If Ret Cut

Australia: Solar costs could rise 50% if RET cut Following yesterday's news that the Warburton Panel - handpicked by Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott - has advised Australia's government to strip back its Renewable Energy Target (RET), solar experts have said that any cut to the RET is likely to increase the cost of solar systems by as much as half.In reviewing the RET, the panel has suggested that there is a "strong case for winding back the small-scale renewable energy scheme" after it found that Australia's booming rooftop solar sector generated 6,400 GW hours of electricity last year - well above the RET's original target of 4,000 GW hours by 2020.Although the final green light is not expected for a few weeks, renewable energy supporters in Australia have urged would-be solar customers to "put their orders in now", warning of a potential 50% price hike should the RET - as widely expected - be cut.The Clean Energy Council's policy manager, Darren Gladman, told the Sydney Morning Herald that potential solar customers should not delay, adding that the window to apply for current rates is likely to be "very narrow if previous policy changes are any guide".Solar retailer Sungevity calculate that the cost of a typical 2 kW PV system will rise from AUS5,000 to AUS7,500 if the small-scale renewable energy scheme is scrapped, extending the payback period from five to eight years.Having been split in 2011 between a large-scale component and an open-ended program for households and small businesses, the RET has been instrumental in bolstering Australia's small-scale solar sector.Currently, there are 1.3 million Australian households with a solar system fitted, aiding the country's overall installed capacity of 3 GW. In 2013, 800 MW of rooftop PV was added, and that figure could reach 750 MW this year, even amid the uncertainty cause by PM Abbott's apparent eagerness to strip back the RET.Uncertainty causing instabilityThe Warburton Panel is largely expected to push for the RET to be cut. Its chief panelist is renowned climate skeptic Dick Warburton, former chairman of petroleum company Caltex. The panel admits that any withdrawal of support is likely to damage the industry, pouring a dose of dampening uncertainty over a sector that has enjoyed unprecedented growth."Modeling indicates that repeal of the RET scheme would have an immediate effect of reducing the install rates of rooftop PV by at least 30%, and the number of solar water heaters by around 16%," said the panel report."However, by the early 2020s, the rate of small-scale solar PV systems installed each year would recover at a rate similar to that if the scheme was left in place."Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) at least agree that the longer-term recovery is likely, but base their findings on the not-unreasonable expectation that solar panel prices will continue to tumble while electricity prices continue to rise. "The end of support will almost certainly create a boom then a bust," said BNEF lead analyst Kobad Bhavnagri. "Every policy change does."Bhavnagri has questioned the panel's recommendations of allowing large-scale renewable energy plants to set one-year targets, allowing firms to bid for 50% of any growth in capacity."It is very hard to see how one-year extensions would give you any certainty. It is totally unworkable," he said.ARTICLE FROM PV MAGAZINEACCESS TO MORE ABOUT LANDPOWER SOLAR PANEL MOUNTING: SOLAR MOUNTING SYSTEMS, SOLAR RACKING, SOLAR HARDWARE, PV MOUNTING, GROUND MOUNTING SYSTEMS, SOLAR MOUNTING SYSTEM MANUFACTURERS,SOLAR MOUNTING