The Clean Energy Regulator (CER) has released its second Quarterly Carbon Market Report (QCMR) for 2023, indicating continued growth in consumer-led small-scale renewables, but new large-scale investments were quiet for the first half of the year.
According to CER, rooftop solar is expected to add over 3 GW of new installed capacity to the grid in 2023, with 1.4 GW from 160,000 systems already installed this year, driven by households and businesses’ continued investment in energy-efficient technology.
CER CEO and Chair David Parker said it’s evident that consumers are preparing for an electric future by controlling their energy usage to save money and reduce their carbon footprint.
“Australia has among the best solar resources in the world and households and businesses continue to install rooftop solar at world leading rates,” Parker stated.
With increasing capacity, renewable energy now accounts for more than 36% of total demand in the National Electricity Market. This figure is predicted to rise to 40% by December.
Furthermore, an anticipated 60,000 additional air source heat pumps have been built this year, representing a 70% increase over the first half of 2022.
In contrast to the increase in small-scale renewables, Parker noted that the first half of the year saw a quiet in new large-scale renewable energy investment commitments.
“We’ve downgraded our expectations and now expect 2023 investment may not reach 3 gigawatts,” Parker said.
Wind and solar continue to be the most cost-effective sources of new energy. Unfortunately, rising component, engineering, and construction prices, combined with high international demand for these products and services, are impeding progress. Finding solutions to simplify grid connections and expedite additional transmission will also be necessary for success.
According to CER, the latest QCMR confirms Australia is on track to deliver 18 million Australian carbon credit units (ACCUs) in 2023.
Parker stated that Safeguard entities are still accumulating ACCUs.
“We expect demand for ACCUs to increase as more facilities progressively finalise and implement their compliance strategies in line with the Safeguard rules, including to reduce emissions at source,” Parker added.
