THE National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) will have the renewable energy feed-in tariffs ready by the end of February, a senior Nersa official said yesterday. According to Nersa, the certainty to be brought by the tariffs could induce long-term investment in the sector.

The government’s renewable energy white paper has set a target of 10000GWh renewable energy contribution to final energy consumption by 2013. According to Nersa that amounts to about 4% of projected electricity demand for 2013 (41539MW). Thembani Bukula, who oversees electricity regulation at Nersa, said the regulator would ensure that investors would get tariffs that would enable them to cover their costs “and still get reasonable margins”.

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Oregon Governer Ted Kulongoski has proposed a plan that would allow people with home solar-energy systems to be compensated for putting power back on the grid.

It would make Oregon the first state in the country to employ such an incentive, which is modeled after a program in Germany in which individuals are compensated for twice the value of what they pay for the home-generated solar energy they put back on the power grid, said Dave Van’t Hof, the governor’s sustainability policy advisor.

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The ACT parliament looks set to introduce the most progressive feed-in tariff legislation in the country with the passing through parliament of ACT Labor MLA Mick Gentleman’s progressive ‘Solar Premium’ legislation.
The legislation pays a tariff of 3.88 the standard retail price for a guaranteed 20 years on all electricity generated by a renewable energy system [...]

On Monday May 5th, the Victorian Government announced that Victoria would join Queensland and South Australia in a feed-in tariff for solar power. The scheme will see homeowners paid 60c for each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of renewable electricity fed back into the grid from a grid-connected solar power system.

However, while leading international feed-in tariffs are paid on the entire generation, Victoria, like the other states, is offering to only pay homeowners for the excess electricity exported to the grid after what is consumed in the home. This raises some serious concerns around equity issues and the ability of these schemes to deliver the levels of renewable energy uptake desired.

Where: Steps of Parliament House, top of Bourke St
When: 8.30am-9.30am, Thursday 8th May 2008
Who: Anyone who loves solar power or wants to see the Victorian government take real action on climate change
The Victorian Government has this week failed to deliver the goods on its long awaited solar feed-in tariff for Victoria. They have delivered a [...]

When: Thursday 8th May, 2008
Time: 8.30am to 9.30am
Where: Steps of Parliament House, top of Bourke St, Melbourne
Who: Anyone who loves solar power or wants the Victorian government to take action against climate change!

The Victorian Government is about to make a decision critical to the future of solar energy.
We need to take urgent action now to ensure Victoria’s solar future.

ACT Labor MP Mick Gentleman has tabled his Private Members’ feed-in tariff legislation in parliament today. This follows an extensive consultation period and a minor revision of the Bill, with the feed-in tariff has now guaranteed for 20 years.
The feed-in tariff rate will initially be set at 3.88 times the retail rate, with the ability [...]

The groundswell for feed-in tariffs in the USA continues to grow, with Michigan the latest State to get on board. Michigan State Representative Kathleen Law has proposed feed-in tariff legislation based on the German model, and has developed a website to tell the world.
This follows feed-in laws introduced in Minnesota, Rhode Island, Washington, New Mexico, [...]

The Solar Bonus Scheme announced by the Queensland Government in March looks to introduce Australia’s second feed-in tariff, following closely in the footsteps of South Australia. And whilst it is welcome to see more governments moving down the path towards what has proven internationally to be a remarkably successful mechanism for increasing the uptake of renewable energy, there is some confusion over the design of the Queensland scheme.

Click here for more info on the proposed scheme and how to take action.

When: Wednesday 12th March
Time: 5pm to 7pm
Where: Trades Hall Council Hall, First Floor, 54 Victoria St, Carlton (cnr Lygon St)

Come along to an information session on feed-in tariffs presented by the Alternative Technology Association, Moreland Energy Foundation and Environment Victoria.