MEDIA  RELEASE    
   
Thursday,  5  May  2011  
 
Nationally  consistent  feed-­‐in  tariff  the  way  forward  for  solar  
 
The  country’s  leading  supplier  of  solar  power  systems,  Solar  Shop  Australia,  has  repeated  
calls  for  a  unified  solar  feed-­‐in  scheme  to  help  meet  the  nation’s  renewable  energy  targets  
and  foster  a  sustainable  solar  industry.  
 
Speaking  at  the  Clean  Energy  Conference  in  Melbourne  yesterday  (Wednesday  4  May)  -­‐  
Solar  Shop  Australia  Chief  Executive  Officer,  Tony  Thornton,  said  it  was  time  Australia  
embraced  a  solar  feed-­‐in  scheme  that  rewarded  all  generators  of  electricity  equally  and  
continued  to  build  the  solar  industry  to  be  independently  cost  competitive  with  coal  by  
2015.  
 
“The  international  race  to  install  renewable  energy  is  still  being  run  and  it  is  not  too  late  for  
Australia  to  develop  an  industry  that  can  create  jobs,  foster  research  and  lead  technical  
advancement  rather  than  losing  valuable  intellectual  capital  to  places  like  China,”  Mr.  
Thornton  said.  
 
“Central  to  achieving  this  is  a  coordinated  and  sustainable  feed-­‐in  tariff  that  pays  any  
generator  of  solar  electricity  a  fixed  amount.  The  benefits  of  such  a  scheme  have  already  
been  successfully  implemented  overseas.”  
 
Mr  Thornton  pointed  to  Germany,  which  adopted  a  comprehensive  feed-­‐in  tariff  that  not  
only  sparked  wide  scale,  sustainable  deployment  of  small  and  large-­‐scale  solar  systems  
across  the  country,  but  has  also  built  an  industry  that  today  contributes  to  a  massive  60  per  
cent  of  GDP  export.  
 
“The  average  size  of  a  household  solar  system  in  Australia  is  2.1kW  compared  to  the  
German  average  of  more  than  double  that  and  this  is  despite  Australia  having  the  third  
highest  per  capita  electricity  usage  of  any  country  on  earth,”  Mr.  Thornton  said.      
 
“This  is  due  to  the  current  design  of  Australia’s  varying  incentive  schemes.    A  unified  feed-­‐in  
tariff  would  encourage  households  to  purchase  larger  systems  that  meet  all  of  their  
electricity  requirements  and  not  just  earn  them  a  rebate  
 
“On  a  larger  scale,  commercial  and  utility  scale  solar  programs  are  sadly  almost  non-­‐existent  
in  Australia  and,  over  the  coming  years,  serious  reductions  in  brown  electricity  will  require  
infrastructure  scale  renewable  projects  to  be  rolled  out  and  funded  from  a  combination  of  
debt  and  equity.      
 
“A  long  term  sustainable  policy  that  includes  a  unified  feed-­‐in  scheme  will  reduce  risk  and  
promote  medium  to  long  term  thinking  that  is  required  to  encourage  investment  in  
technologies  such  as  solar,  and  gain  the  attention  and  traction  of  banking  and  finance  
sectors.    
 

 
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“A  unified  feed-­‐in  tariff  would  ensure  that  households,  communities  and  organisations  are  
rewarded  for  all  of  the  energy  they  produce    –  an  essential  element  to  ensuring  quality  and  
longevity  of  solar  investment.”  
 
-­‐End  
 
 
Contact:     Sam  Ion  of  communikate  et  al  
  0425  434  423  or  sam@communikate.net.au  
 

ABOUT  SOLAR  SHOP  AUSTRALIA  

Solar  Shop  Australia  is  the  one  of  the  nation’s  leading  providers  of  premium,  quality  solar  power  
systems  tailored  specifically  to  household  needs.  With  more  than  a  decade’s  experience  in  solar  
energy,  SSA  is  passionate  about  the  benefits  of  renewable  energy  and  delivering  on  “The  Power  of  
Good”  for  individuals,  communities  and  the  environment.    
For  more  information  visit  www.solarshop.com.au