november 2009 solarrise newsletter, australia solar cities

8/8/2019 November 2009 Solarrise Newsletter, Australia Solar Cities

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Welcome to the third edition o Solarise – the newsletteror Australia’s Solar Cities. Each o the Solar Cities

has exciting events to report including launch o the

Rundle Lantern solar installation in Adelaide Solar City,

construction o the Central Victoria Solar City PV Parks,

and signing o the Perth Solar City unding agreement.

News rom Australia’s Solar Cities

Welcome

In this issue

• Welcome

• Adelaide Solar City powers Rundle Lantern

• Alice Solar City Sustainable Living Houseon show

• Perth Solar City agreement signed

• A ‘BEEP’ case study rom Blacktown SolarCity

• First sod turned or new Solar Park onMagnetic Island

• Central Victoria Solar Parks update

• Spotlight

Let and above: Rundle Lantern solar installation. From L to R: Tim

Peer, Adelaide City Council; Karlos Silva, BP Solar; Dario De Bortoli,

Origin Energy; Kate Ellis, Member or Adelaide, and Michael Harbison,

Adelaide Lord Mayor (images courtesy Adelaide Solar City)

Issue 3

November 2009

Stop press!Perth Solar City was launched on 5 November by the

Minister or the Environment, Heritage and the Arts,

Peter Garrett.

Also on 5 November, Blacktown Solar City’s 110 kW

commercial PV system launched at Coca-Cola Amatil.

See the next issue o Solarise or urther inormation.

Adelaide Solar City powers

Rundle LanternAdelaide Solar City is making great progress towards

creating a more sustainable uture or Adelaide, with

completion o the Rundle Lantern solar installation - its

th key photovoltaic (PV) project.

The 50 kilowatt PV installation was designed and

supplied by consortium member BP Solar. The system is

made up o 297 solar panels and is expected to generate

approximately 70,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) o electricity

each year, which is more than enough energy to power

the needs o the Rundle Lantern.

The Rundle Lantern is a dynamic city art installation withnearly 750 LED panels. The LEDs use 90 per cent less

energy than incandescent light bulbs.

The Minister or the Environment, Heritage and the

Arts, Peter Garrett, was represented at the 3 September

launch by the Member or Adelaide, the Hon Kate Ellis.

The Rundle Lantern PV system is one o eight key solar

installations planned by the Adelaide Solar City project,

and was made possible through the joint eorts and

commitment o the Australian Government, BP Solar

and Adelaide City Council – partner to Adelaide Solar

City.



On 7 September, the Perth Solar City agreement was

signed between the Australian Government and the

project’s lead proponent, Western Power.

Joining Western Power in the Perth Solar City consortium

are the Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority, the Eastern

Metropolitan Regional Council, Eco Smart, Prospero

Productions, Solahart, SunPower, and Synergy.

The Perth Solar City project is the seventh city to receive

unding under the Government’s Solar Cities program

and is also one o the largest demonstration Solar Cities.

Involving the six member councils o the Perth East

Metropolitan Region, support rom the project will be

made available to an expected 300,000 residents.

To nd out more on Perth Solar City, please visit the

website: www.perthsolarcity.com.au

Perth Solar City agreementsigned

Above let to right: Michael Ward, Director Solar Cities; LisaCunningham, Manager Smart Grid Western Power; Ross Carter, FirstAssistant Secretary Renewables and Energy Eciency Division; Alan

Balino, Assistant Director Solar Cities; Mary Wiley-Smith (seated)Assistant Secretary Renewables and Energy Eciency Division; andDoug Aberle (seated) CEO Western Power.

The Alice Solar City Sustainable Living House was launched

on 13 September 2009.

The Sustainable Living House is a showcase o the energy

eciency and solar measures recommended or the arid

environment and available through Alice Solar City.

An open competition was held within the community

which received more than 60 entries. To ensure a holistic

approach that includes water eciency, Alice Solar City

partnered with local environmental NGO – DesertSMART

COOLmob – which managed and unded the water

eciency elements o the project.

The winner o the competition has received a complete

energy and water makeover, with over 20 measures

installed including energy ecient LED lighting, grey

water and solar PV systems, double skin thermal walls and

a white roo – which helps keep the temperature o the

house down by up to 15 degrees.

In return, Alice Solar City organises an open-house to

the public once every two months or two years to

demonstrate an energy wise home to the Alice Springs

community. The energy and water consumption o the house will

continue to be monitored and evaluated.

The rst open day was held in conjunction with

Sustainable House Day - over 250 local residents attended.

Alice Solar City SustainableLiving House on show

Let and above: Alice Solar City Sustainable Living House, one-stop

booster or solar hot water system



The Business Energy Eciency Program (BEEP) o

Blacktown Solar City targets Blacktown businesses with

typical annual energy costs o more than $75,000. The

program helps eligible businesses take the rst steps

towards cutting energy costs and carbon emissions

through energy-eciency upgrades.

One o many businesses to take up the Blacktown Solar

City oer is the Our Lady o Consolation Aged Care

Services (OLOCACS) which operates 365 days a year,

providing both nursing home and hostel care. The centreincludes a commercial laundry and kitchen, a chapel,

convent, recreation hall, wellness centre, hairdresser and

administration area.

Blacktown Solar City consortium member – Big Switch

Projects – conducts targeted energy audits under BEEP.

The OLOCACS energy audit included a pre-easibility study

o onsite cogeneration and photovoltaics, and ocussed on

lighting, power actor correction and laundry operations.

The audit identied potential energy savings o 1,300

gigajoules per year rom improvements to light ttings,

changes to the laundry operations and lighting controlsacross the acility. The annual potential energy saving is

the equivalent o removing 42 cars rom the road.

OLOCACS CEO, Barry Wiggins, said he was delighted with

the work done through Blacktown Solar City.

“We have some very cost-eective changes we can start

in the near uture, and some long term projects that we

can start planning or now with the knowledge that the

payback is only going to get better over time – particularly

i electricity and gas prices change,” Mr Wiggins said.

A ‘BEEP’ case study romBlacktown Solar City

Right: indicative artist’s impression o Magnetic Island PV park

(image courtesy Townsville: Queensland Solar City)

Above: Our Lady o Consolation Aged Care Services (OLOCACS).

The rst step towards construction o a 100kW Solar Park

on Magnetic Island was taken in late September, with an

ocial sod turning ceremony at the Smart Liestyle Centre.

The ceremony took place during a visit by some o

the leading international solar and renewable energy

researchers and industry representatives. The visiting

delegation was enjoying a Renewable Energy Tour o the

Townsville: Queensland Solar City project as part o the

Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society (ANZSES)

Solar 09 Conerence in Townsville.

Solar City Project Manager, Ian Cruickshank, said that once

completed, the Solar Park is expected to generate about

119,100 kWh o renewable solar energy and displace over

120 tonnes o carbon emissions each year.

“This is an exciting initiative which demonstrates the

commitment o the Townsville: Queensland Solar City

project in delivering practical applications o solar energy

that will assist our understanding o renewable energy and

will also benet the local community,” Mr Cruickshank said.

“Magnetic Island continues its transormation into a

shining example o what a community can do to learnabout and manage their demand or household energy.

“The development o this Solar Park and the Smart

Liestyle Centre will only advance this transormation, and

help make the precinct a showpiece and a major drawcard

on Magnetic Island.”

The Solar Park is expected to include a number o

structures to demonstrate multiple ways to use high

quality PV, and will produce publishable results o PV

operation in the tropics.

Community consultation started recently to gain

community input towards the best design or the SolarPark and associated acilities.

First sod turned or new SolarPark on Magnetic Island



SpotlightIn this column, we introduce

someone involved with Solar Cities

and learn about their role in the

program.

In this issue we meet Bruce

Thompson, Project Manager o

Moreland Solar City.

How long have you been working on Moreland Solar

City?

I’ve worked on the Moreland Solar City project

or our years, rom its development as a concept,

application or unding through to detailed design and

implementation in 2009. It’s very rewarding to now be

implementing the ideas and plans on the ground.

What issues do you deal with in a typical working day?

A typical day involves oversight o project

administration, working with our team on design and

delivery o our key initiatives, meeting with consortium

members and project delivery partners.

What excites you most about your Solar City?

There’s a lot o activity within our community on

climate change that’s increasing daily. The Solar

City project is exciting as we can provide practical

assistance to the community and integrate actions to

build a sustainable vision or Moreland.

Describe the energy saving measures you have

undertaken in your own home?

As a renter, I’ve done most o the basic actions

possible – I have replaced all incandescent lights with

CFLs, draught sealing o doors and windows, switch

o standby appliances, and raised the ridge to aid

air circulation capacity. I’ve recently had a HomeSustainability Assessment or a Green Loan and I’m

now talking with our landlady to see i we can replace

the existing electric hot water system with either gas

instantaneous or gas solar.

Further inormationVisit the Solar Cities website:www.environment.gov.au/settlements/solarcities

© Commonwealth o Australia, 2009

Inormation contained in this publication may be copied orreproduced or study, research, inormation or educational

purposes, subject to inclusion o an acknowledgment o

the source.

Central Victoria Solar Parksupdate Two 300kW Solar Parks are nearing completion as part o

the Central Victoria Solar City (CVSC). Located in Ballarat

and Bendigo, these Parks have incorporated fat plate

tracking technologies along with xed plate systems.

The Bendigo Solar Park also integrates battery storage

technology which is the rst o its kind in Australia. These

innovations will provide greater monitoring and control

to ensure maximum eciencies in energy production, at

the same time, increasing the economic return o the solar

energy captured.

The two Solar Parks are expected to become unique

landmarks in Bendigo and Ballarat, and are located next

to the Bendigo Livestock Exchange and at Ballarat Airport,

respectively.

When combined, the two Solar Parks occupy an area

equivalent to the size o three soccer elds or one and a

hal Aussie Rules ovals.

Visitors will be able to visit each Solar Park and observe

digital read outs o the amount o energy generated

by the Park and the amount o greenhouse gas

emissions saved. Three hundred households in Ballaratand Bendigo will soon have the opportunity to subscribe

to the unique CVSC Solar Park Package.

For more inormation, please visit

www.centralvictoriasolarcity.com.au or call the Central

Victoria Solar City oce on 03 5479 1900.

Above let: Bendigo PV Park

Below let: Ballart PV Park

(image courtesy Central Victoria Solar City)

november 2009 solarrise newsletter, australia solar cities

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