All it really includes is a link to the Queensland Hot Water Program Pack page. While the pack is hosted on the Cleanenergy website, there is no link to it from that site. I wonder why that is? Do they want to keep it secret?

All the solar hot water companies that I have spoken to about the program and who had tendered for it say they have received communication from the government that they were unsuccessful. So who is going to deliver this huge program? Is it the Queensland Government?

The pack looks great, good graphic design job. Then it mainly consists of questions to assess your property. You have to fill all that out and send it back to Brisbane. And then…

I called the hotline and asked about what happens next. The answer: “You’ll be advised whether you’ve been successful in your application. We do not have the criteria yet, don’t know whether it will be a ballot draw or on a first come – first served basis. You’ll just have to wait and see.”

My question about brands was answered that it depends on the area where you live.

So, it continues to be a program with more questions than answers. Sometimes it crosses my mind that if it were an individual who told me all these things, I’d think he had lost the plot. However, this is our state government. So there must be some substance behind it. So my best advice: get your application in as fast as possible and see what happens. You can always back out if it does not turn out to be to your liking.

Timing of the Queensland Hot Water Program

The hotline guy also reminded me that the program is going to be rolled out over 3 years, the insinuation being that this might not be a quick thing… And the paperwork keeps stressing that if you have a broken hot water system, you’d better go somewhere else – not the Queensland Hot Water Program. Here are the reasons why you should purchase a solar hot water system in Queensland.

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Premier Anna Bligh earlier promised to retrofit 200,000 homes with solar hot water systems or heat pumps at $500 each, and $100 for pensioners, under the Queensland Solar Hot Water Program. Details about how the Program will work have not been available until now.

Energy Minister Stephen Robertson today announced that, while all Queenslanders can register for the Queensland Solar Hot Water Program, the subsidised hot water systems hinge on the participant being eligible to receive the $1600 Federal Government Solar Hot Water Rebate.

The Queensland Government will pay the system installer $1600 on behalf of the participant. When the participant receives their $1600 rebate from the Federal Government, they are obliged to pay it to the Queensland Government. They also have to agree to assign their Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) to the installer.

If the participant fails to receive the $1600 rebate from the Federal Government, they are still obliged to reimburse the Queensland Government for that amount.

Find out if you are eligible for the Federal Solar Hot Water Rebate.

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Dux’s Hotlogic controller, the smarts attached to the hot water cylinder, detects when the outside temperature drops to 5 degrees C, then keeps the solar panels frost-free by trickling hot water into them until the panel reaches 9 degrees. The panels will never cool down enough to be affected by frost.

Frost valves are no longer specified by Dux in frost-prone areas because in a few cases they were found not to close properly, resulting in a continual dribble from the valve. As the valve was designed only as backup frost protection, customers can be assured that the Hotlogic controllers will do the job.

Dux’s warranty applies to all solar water heaters installed without an anti-frost valve from 1 May 2009. If anyone with a Dux frost valve is experiencing a problem with it, they should contact Dux to report it.

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The Renewable Remote Power Generation Program ends today in all states except Western Australia. The program effectively funded up to half the costs of solar panels, wind turbines or batteries for people in remote areas.

Today’s announcement from the NSW government was more positive: a net feed-in tariff of 60 cents a kilowatt hour. This means that anyone with a solar power system can sell the excess energy they generate back into the grid for around four times the price of buying it from the grid.

The tariff applies to systems up to 10 kilowatts in size and begins on 1 January 2010.

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For people wanting to install a solar power system, this delay means that any Federal Government rebate is in limbo. The $8000 rebate ended on 9 June, but its expected replacement – originally planned for 1 July – will not be known for some time.

Politicians from both sides have suggested that in the meantime people installing solar power systems should keep their receipts and apply for rebates once the shape of the new system is known.

Anyone buying now would still receive Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), however the multiplier proposed under the Solar Credits (part of the RET) is not in place.

Given the general uncertainty surrounding the RET, it’s probably best to wait and see.

Climate Change Minister Penny Wong has defended ending the rebate scheme early before the replacement system was ready, saying it was fiscally responsible. There were around 63,000 unprocessed applications for $8,000 each in Canberra the day it ended, giving some idea of how popular the scheme was proving.

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This is curious, particularly as the program is due to begin in two weeks on 1 July.

While the government is to be applauded for setting a target of 200,000 retrofitting energy-efficient
hot water systems in households, how they are going to deliver and what it will cost remains unclear.

The hot water system retrofits are to be made under the Queensland Solar Hot Water Program, which is funded by the Queensland Future Growth Fund. While both get a mention in the text of the budget papers, there are no details.

A few items that ARE specifically costed include: $4.3 million to Ergon Energy Corporation for the Birdsville Geothermal Power Station; $3 million to Mackay Sugar Co-operative for the Mackay Sugar Cogeneration Project; $2.5 million to the CSIRO for SolarGas One.

These figures are considerably less than what the Queensland Solar Hot Water Program would cost, so it’s absence is not explained by any lack of importance.

An installed solar hot water system currently costs around $2000 (including Federal Government rebate and Renewable Energy Certificates); the cost of 200,000 systems to the State government would be around $400 million.

If the State Government provides 30% of the 200,000 retrofits to pensioners and low income earners for $100 (as they have stated) and the rest for $500, the public will make a contribution of $74 million. The difference, to be funded by the government, is around $326 million.

Where this money is to come from remains a mystery.

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The Green Loans Program is designed to help householders, especially families, install products such as renewable energy systems including solar power, wall insulation, glazing, efficient hot water systems and water tanks.

Sunshine Coast financial institution Maleny Credit Union (MCU) is one of the government’s first partners in the scheme.

How the Green Loans Program works

• Book a free home sustainability assessment with a qualified assessor to investigate the best actions you can take – you can register your interest now.
• The assessor will write a home sustainability report especially for you, and it forms the basis for your Green Loan application. The report is valid for six months.
• You can apply for a loan of up to $10,000, interest-free for the first four years.
• There is no application fee for a Green Loan.
• Only one interest-free Green Loan can be provided for each home assessment report, however a Green Loan can be used to finance a number of home projects.

If you want to borrow more than $10,000 under the scheme, you can take out two loans from MCU:

• An interest-free Green Personal Loan for $10,000, and
• Green Appliance Loan for the additional amount of funds required, up to $15,000 at MCU’s standard loan terms and conditions. Go to MCU’s website for rates available.

About Maleny Credit Union

As an ethical organization, MCU lends approximately 60% of its funds for green, sustainable, and socially responsible loan purposes, and as such is deemed an ethical investment.

MCU won a number of the highly acclaimed Money magazine awards, primarily for its environmentally designed loans, including being judged the winner of the 2009 Best Socially Responsible Product – MCU Green Appliance Loan.

For more information on the Green Loans Program including a full list of eligibility guidelines visit www.environment.gov.au/greenloans. For more information about MCU see their website or phone 07 5499 8988.

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This is just the trailer. For the whole movie go to Home Project. What is it about? The beauty and fragility of our planet AND what actions we can take to keep it alive.

And if you happen to live on the Sunshine Coast, you can also watch this movie at one of the Green Movie Nights:

When: Tuesday 16 June, 7.30pm
Where: Halse Lodge, 2 Halse Lane, Noosa
Bookings: (07) 5447 3377
Cost: Gold coin donation to go to Noosa Landcare

When: Wednesday 17 June, 5.30-8 pm
Where: Nambour Civic Centre, Currie Street, Nambour
Bookings: (07) 5475 7272
Cost: Gold coin donation

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What does it all mean for people who want a solar power system and who missed out on the rebate?

The government solar power subsidies for homeowners in place up until yesterday used a combination of a rebate ($8000) and Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs).

The replacement system, as of today, uses only RECs to subsidise the purchase of renewable energy generators by householders, businesses and organisations. Effectively, RECs are the means used to encourage the uptake of renewable energy under the government’s Renewable Energy Target scheme.

Details are still to be published by the government, but here is a rundown of what the new scheme will mean for householders wanting a solar power system.

• RECs are an indicator of a power system’s efficiency, therefore one brand may attract more RECs than another.
• From now on, the number of RECs attracted by a new power system up to 1.5kW is subject to a multiplier. Until 2012, this multiplier is 5: a system that earned, for example, 33 RECs before 9 June now earns 165 RECs (also known as “solar credits”).
• RECs have a market value and are tradeable, which means their price varies according to market conditions. Currently they trade at $43. So for example if you buy a solar system today that attracts 33 RECs (or 165 after the multiplier), you will effectively receive a subsidy of $7,095.
• The solar credits only apply for systems up to 1.5kW. Any portion of the system that is larger receives the normal number of RECs.
• The new scheme isn’t properly in place yet. Anyone signing up for a solar power system from today can choose to receive RECs per the old scheme, then once the new regulations come through (some weeks after legislation is passed) receive the balance. Or you can choose to wait to apply for these solar credits.

Where to from here?
You can get an indicative quote on a solar system based on all the information available right now. We’ll let you know any other relevant information once we get the details from the government.

More information

Media release from Minister Peter Garrett, 9 June 2009, announcing the end of the old scheme

Fact sheet from Department of Climate Change: Supporting small generation system under the renewable energy target (RET) scheme

Renewable Energy Target Scheme Design

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We understand that all applications posted to the government today will still be assessed for the $8000 rebate.

We are encouraging all prospective SolarPay customers to get their application forms to us before close of business today.

Details of the replacement scheme are not yet available, but we will communicate them as soon as they are known.

For further information see the media release from the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts.

The good news is that they didn’t close the scheme retrospectively, and it gives people a small window of opportunity to apply for the rebate.

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In Queensland, every kWh of electricity produced by your solar power system above what you use (at any given moment in time), you receive 44 cents (compared with the 16 cents it costs to purchase electricity). See Net Feed In Tariff for details.

Other states have their own regulations, but there is a push towards a standard Australian regulation, but nothing decided as yet.

Quality solar systems

We use quality brand panels with performance guarantees and warranties. Aluminium brackets are used for maximum lifespan and the installer guarantees their work for five years.

Why so cheap?

We are able to offer you an excellent price because we have negotiated bulk purchase for the panels and inverters. We sell the panels to you at cost and charge an administration fee.

Self-funding purchase

If you are able pay the whole cost price of the solar system up front (and wait for your rebate to arrive from the government 8-12 weeks later), you can save even more. Paying up front (also called self-funding) compares favourably with the cost of personal finance, and a number of institutions now offer green loans for just such a purpose.

Any additional costs?

Additional costs are rare, but may be incurred if:

• your switchboard does not comply with current regulations. In these circumstances the electrician is obliged by law to upgrade it
• the angle of your roof is such that additional brackets are needed to position the panels differently
• there is nowhere suitable for the inverter to be installed and a weatherproof box needs to be made.

The vast majority of our installations are standard, involving no additional costs.

Refund policy

Should the government not approve your rebate or should your roof not be suitable, all money will be refunded in full with no administration fees charged.

No paperwork

We fill out all the necessary forms to secure your rebates, you simply need to sign them and we will lodge them on your behalf.

Your household can make a difference

A 1.08kW system on your home will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 1.4 tonnes a year.
Get a free solar power quote now.

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Funding is now on offer for energy saving and environmental projects in communities in regional areas, courtesy of the Ergon Energy Envirofund.

The pool of money amounts to $100,000 and they are dishing it up in sums as small as $200 and as large as $20,000 or more.

Ideally your project will be about energy conservation, but the Envirofund will consider other ideas too. Ergon is expecting the requests would be to finance things like reducing greenhouse gas emissions, educating to bring about behavioural change, promoting renewable energy, wildlife and environment protection and conservation.

To get your hands on any of the funds, you need to be an incorporated not-for-profit organisation and be anywhere in regional Queensland (i.e. not Brisbane, Sunshine Coast or Gold Coast).

Applications for the first round of grants close Friday 31 July, so take a look at the Ergon Energy website for more info.

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