New bill introduced to boost Victoria’s renewable energy target
Yesterday, the Victorian government introduced a bill to increase the state’s renewable energy target to 50% by 2030.
The Renewable Energy (Jobs and Investment) Amendment Bill 2019 builds on the existing VRET legislation, which ensures 25% of electricity generation comes from renewable sources by 2020 and 40% by 2025.
Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, Lily D'Ambrosio believes that adding more renewable energy to the grid will decrease energy bills for Victorians by as much as $32 a year.
“By boosting renewable energy in Victoria the government is creating thousands of jobs, putting more energy into the grid and driving down energy prices,” she said.
“The increased target will also help drive down emissions - achieving a VRET of 50% by 2030 is the equivalent of taking 655,000 cars off the road for a year.”
And to help Victoria get to their target, the Solar Homes program was introduced. The Solar Homes Program provides eligible Victorian households with access to solar rebates for either the installation of solar panels, batteries and hot water systems and so far has been met with great success.
Under the government’s Solar Homes initiative, solar panels will be delivered to 700,000 homes, solar hot systems to 60,000 homes and solar batteries to 10,000 homes over the next 10 years.
At the moment, rebates for solar panels have reached maximum capacity for August. The next release of rebates will be available from September 1, 2019.
How renewable energy is growing nationally
According to the 2018 Renewable Energy Target Administrative Report, renewable energy generation is expected to increase steadily, with 30,000 gigawatt hours generated in 2019 before jumping to 40,000 gigawatt hours by 2020.
Additionally, the Clean Energy Regulator (CER) said Australia is on track to exceed its renewable energy target, thanks to the record breaking investment in solar over the last 12 months.
And aside from large-scale investments, figures from the 2019 Clean Energy Report show that Aussies are also doing their bit for a greener future, with one in five households having already installed solar panels - saving an average of $540 on their annual energy bill.
So if you’re now keen to make a difference to your annual energy bill with solar panels, you’re going to need a solar-friendly retailer. Our energy comparison tool can help you compare energy retailers that offer solar plans in your area.
