July 24, 2018 
With less government support than many other countries around the world, renewable energy, and increasingly, storage, in Australia are able to compete with subsidised fossil fuel energy production.
The world’s leading market pioneers and innovators in the renewable energy industry gathered at the Global Solar + Energy Storage Congress & Expo in Shanghai from 2-4 July, including our very own Global Head of Energy & Infrastructure, Jan Rieche and Renewable Energy Senior Consultant, Fiona Lin.
With the price of solar and storage decreasing and the industry’s ever-growing presence in global markets, it becomes clear that renewable energy is on trend and only becoming more popular and more successful.
Jan Rieche shares his insights as a panellist at the Congress & Expo, and reflects on this growth in both the recent past and future of the industry’s global expanse…
I have just returned from chairing the “Global Energy Storage Market Update and Outlook” stream and hosting the “Advanced Solar + Storage Applications” panel discussion with global thought leaders.
Three key takeaways emerged during my time at the event: Firstly, the inevitable success of renewables following the recent price decreases for solar and storage. Secondly, how much China is doing in the renewable energy area and the number of companies pushing into China and abroad with new and cheaper technology. And thirdly, the massive role Australia can potentially play if increased government support was to be provided.
Not only does Australia have the space and favourable conditions (sun, wind, tides) needed to produce way more energy we could ever use in our homes, offices, factories and modes of transport – but also what a big exporter of energy and technology we could become with storage technologies like batteries and hydrogen (and other technologies in development). Perhaps even one day a Timor Sea power link to Indonesia and Timor-Leste.
With less government support than many other countries around the world, renewables and increasingly storage in Australia, are able to compete with subsidised fossil fuel energy production. This has created an industry that was forced to and can now stand on its own two feet and export this knowledge to the rest of the world.
Despite the minimal monetary support government has provided to renewable energy compared to other industries, Australia has already become a leading global powerhouse in renewable energy solutions and can only continue to champion its involvement internationally – all thanks to the challenging circumstances renewable energy in Australia has been able to overcome.
