Photo by Milivoj Sherrington
Australia: the Saudi Arabia of solar?
Australia has the potential to house 34 solar thermal power stations by as soon as 2020, says a leading global engineering company.
WorleyParsons is planning to build the world’s largest solar thermal power plant in Australia by 2011 and is undertaking a study to find potential sites for its first 250-megawatt station, which, in theory, is sufficient to power 100,000 houses. Locations under consideration include the Pilbara in Western Australia, South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales.
Solar thermal energy differs from solar photovoltaics in that it produces steam harnessed by solar energy – and it is predicted that solar thermal energy will augment existing photovoltaic technology.
Australian Greens climate change spokeswoman Christine Milne said Australia could become ''the Saudi Arabia of solar”.
“The world is on the cusp of a solar energy revolution and Australia is uniquely placed to sustain a solar energy industry, possessing some of the highest intensity solar resources around the globe" said WorleyParsons’ Chief Executive Officer John Grill. "A solar facility a single square kilometre in size could power 50,000 households”.
“Our objective is to deliver 40 per cent of Australia’s additional renewable energy needs through solar-thermal power by 2020. We believe this is realistic and achievable based on our experience with similar solar-thermal plants around the world,” Mr Grill said.
Australia has committed to a ensuring that by 2020, 20 per cent of Australia’s electricity supply comes from renewable energy sources. The Government will also introduce an emissions trading scheme by 2010. Both of these measures are vital for Australia to effectively tackle climate change and present opportunities for Australia to become a leader in solar energy and energy efficiency.
This year the Australian Government will propose a 2020 target for reducing Australia’s carbon pollution. To play our part in avoiding catastrophic climate change, we must reduce our carbon pollution by at least a third by 2020. Consistent with urgent advice from leading international scientists – the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – ACF is calling on the Australian Government to set legally binding national targets to cut greenhouse pollution by at least 30 per cent by 2020 (from 1990 levels).