Renewable Energy
Massively improved cost competitiveness of wind and solar PV in recent years strengthens the business case of these technologies
Not so long ago, all renewables including wind and solar were a much harder sell
Always encourage renewable energy technology uptake during development of climate action plans
Expert advice and research on renewable energy options provided to
- infrastructure operators
- governments and institutions
- companies seeking climate change solutions
Our program and policy advice has helped renewable energy project development and underpinned grant applications for its installation
Technology
Technology overviews examined typical and innovative renewable energy options suitable to our clients
- One such overview for a major infrastructure client operating in Sydney and Melbourne included
- Solar Electric (photovoltaics, concentrator dishes and concentrator trough)
- Solar Thermal (concentrator trough, air/space heating)
- Wind Turbines (micro/ domestic scale – horizontal and vertical axis)
- Road Energy (thermal or electrical energy from roads)
- Bio-fuels (biodiesel, ethanol)
- Fuel Cells (Phosphoric Acid, Molten Carbonate and Solid Oxide)
- Co-generation and Landfill Gas to electricity
Full technology reviews, including costs and payback periods undertaken of
- solar PV panels
- solar concentrator dishes
- medium-scale wind turbines
Advised Australian companies and a Chinese provincial government on possible available technologies
- biomass to energy
- solar
- wind
- hydro-electricity
- geothermal
Advice included ways to incorporate these technologies within the broader community or regional framework within which they operate
In the early days of the wind and solar PV boom, we provided a lead research institution with research into Australia’s PV and wind industries’
- capacity
- structure
- training
- employment
Assessed and analysed an Australian Government database of renewable energy facilities
- identify gaps and errors
- outline options for improving its functionality
Our input into impact assessments include renewable energy as a possible mitigation action
- Several clients subsequently undertook to utilise electricity generated by renewable energy sources
Assisted development of several proposals to install biomass energy technologies
- providing energy or process feedstock
- in developing countries, for the retail sector and for industrial sites
Services provided to an Australian Government project creating several technology Best Practice Guides, Workbooks and websites
- Technologies included were Building Integrated PV (BiPV), Energy from Waste, biomass conversion and hydro-electricity
Experience Before Consulting
In the early days of Australia’s response to climate change, during the mid to late 1990s, our Director was the renewable energy and co-generation adviser with the Australian Government’s voluntary climate change program, Greenhouse Challenge
Strategies developed targeted
- increased participation of major companies in these two sectors
- improved Government and Industry recognition of them and the climate solutions they offered
He has authored/ co-authored numerous chapters, peer reviewed papers and publications on renewable energy, covering
- the technology
- its use
- the attitudes and experiences of users of various technologies
He conducted Australia’s first research focused exclusively on users seeking domestic energy self-sufficiency through the use of renewable energy, exploring their systems, attitudes and experiences
- Systems studied used renewable energy sources as a part of Remote Area Power Systems (RAPS)
- solar PV
- solar thermal (hot water)
- micro-wind
- micro-hydro
- biomass, along with battery storage.
- The users were at the leading edge of technology uptake, at a time when
PV was more than 10x as expensive as today and current household battery options didn’t exist
- Several case studies were completed into
- equipment manufacture
- the use of green grids
- community-scale use of renewable energy
- use in eco-tourism operations
