Solar Energy Expansion A Threat to Power Corporations

The Climate Commission has recently published a report regarding the future of solar energy use in Australia. In it, the commission was pleased to note that there has been a significant move to solar energy use.

In the previous years, demand and use for solar panels has seen an increase with 2.7 terawatt hours on record. This numbers have more than double the demand of 1.4 terawatt hours since 2008.

While there is only a small percentage of solar power use in total, experts say that it is already helping with energy use particularly during the summer periods when generators are in demand. This, however, is affecting the business of other energy resources and power companies, as summer is the time for them to reap on profits.

The solar industry, which had been focusing on households in the past, is now shifting to commercial users, who make use of solar energy a lot. In fact, one of the world’s most successful solar producers, Yingli Green Energy, has just opened its Australian office, specifically to expand its business.

Analysts see this approach, however, as something that could really affect the power industry. Solar power expansion may soon go the way of being “behind the meter” and the analyst cites:

“It will see that consumption just fall away.”

“It won’t measurable in any way by the electricity system.”

“It will only be possible to be estimated by the size of the array the business has installed.”

The Climate Commission has compared the expansion of solar energy use and its effects on power companies as similar to the way the internet is changing big media players.