MEDIA RELEASE 23/7/2019
Melbourne-based battery developer Zenaji Australia has called for a re-think on government-issued solar subsidies in Victoria, saying the confusion over the scheme is crippling the industry.
Solar industry businesses in Victoria rallied on the steps of State Parliament on Thursday, angry at recent changes to the scheme which has caused confusion among consumers and a huge downturn in the industry which has resulted in job losses.
The Victorian State Energy Council said solar installations were down more than 30% since the current scheme was introduced, whilst the rally has been told this morning the industry was down 95% and had come to a standstill.
Zenaji Australia Managing Director Dawson Johns said the scheme had caused a major slump in consumer spending in the sector and was in fact counterproductive to its objective of promoting Solar installations.
“If the government was serious about subsidising solar energy for Victorians it would open the scheme up, remove some of the regulations and manage its safety and compliance more efficiently,” Mr Johns said.
“The industry would flourish as it had been until this latest intervention. The Industry does not need the Victorian Government paying for what people get paid to put in through reduced power bills.”
“Creative policy like the introduction of a 29c cent per kWh import tariff between 3PM and 9PM was both creative and served Victorians well” he said.
“It would be better for Victoria if the Government help people pay for batteries which assist the grid, help reduce power bills further, and help the Government reduce the enormous cost of upgrading the power lines.”
He went on to say, “The CEC regulations on which current subsidies were based suited only some large overseas battery makers and were out of date, based on old technology, wildly expensive and kept the safest batteries in the world from entering the market.”
Mr Johns urged the Andrews Government to scrap solar installation subsidies across the industry, stating the benefits would include the removal of cavalier operators in the industry, better quality products, clearer communication to consumers, and faster pathways to the release of newer, safer technologies.
“There is no real cost-benefit to consumers who have to wait to become eligible for solar rebates whilst they are paying higher-than-average costs for energy in the meantime,” Mr Johns said.“Solar installation is a nobrainer, people should proceed with installation with or without rebates because it makes economic sense to do so.”“If more battery technology was subsidised, we’d see immediate benefits in storage power being returned to the grid and power being stored and used for when the cost of electricity is at its heighest. We encourage the Victorian Government to look broadly across the sector to create policies which are more positive and beneficial to the community,” he said.
About Zenaji Australia
Zenaji is an Australian company with an impressive list of engineers, physicists and marketing sales people who have come together to design, manufacture and market the very best energy storage solutions. The company recently released its home and business battery solution, the Zenaji Aeon Battery. Its product offering includes;
- A 20-year warranty for its products making it the only lithium battery to offer positive return on investment
- A warranty based on three full charge cycles per day, compared to leading industry standards of one cycle per day
- Ability to operate at higher and lower operating temperatures than current market leaders, and it is much safer than alternative lithium-based batteries
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