Rooftop solar panels overloading electricity grid

Power distribution lines and home wiring were designed for electricity to flow from power stations to appliances, but households with solar panels do the reverse of this.

One of Australia's biggest electricity network providers, Ausgrid, yesterday warned that there was a "significant likelihood" that costs would have to rise because of the impact of the solar photovoltaic cells.

In a letter to the NSW pricing regulator, obtained by The Australian, Ausgrid warns that in areas with a high concentration of solar cells, voltage levels can rise and this can have "consequences for appliances and equipment in customers' homes". It can also cause solar systems to switch off.

In Queensland, some new applications for rooftop solar systems have been rejected and Energex now urges customers to check that a solar PV system can be installed without threatening the operation of the network.

In Western Australia, Horizon Power has set limits on how much renewable energy can be installed in a system without affecting the power supply. Horizon is rejecting applications for new renewables installations in Exmouth and Carnarvon, and accepting them only from households, schools and not-for-profit organisations in Broome and Leonora.

Energex spokesman Mike Swanston said it was becoming difficult for electricity distribution authorities to set up the power system to ensure correct voltages when some houses in a street had solar and others did not.

"It is similar to the water network - the pipes get smaller and the pressure is designed to be lower as you get closer to the house," Mr Swanston said. "Start pumping water backwards into the smaller household pipes, and all sorts of strange things happen."

Energy Networks Association acting chief executive John Deveraux said the problem would only get worse as more rooftop solar panels were installed and the systems got bigger.

In southeast Queensland alone, more than 22,300 rooftop solar systems were installed in the first three months of this financial year - more than the 19,000 installed in the 2009-10 financial year, according to Energex.

Federal Labor's target of producing 20 per cent of electricity from renewable sources such as solar power by 2020 has pushed up demand for the rooftop PV systems. So, too, have state-based schemes that pay generous feed-in tariffs to households for injecting power back into the grid.

Meanwhile, a flood of cheap solar panels being made in Asia and imported into Australia has offset moves by the government and some states to wind back their subsidies.

Power quality problems are worse in rural areas as the network is sometimes weaker and there is generally more space, meaning that bigger solar PV systems with capacities of 5 kilowatts or more are being installed, compared with the 1kW-3kW systems more common in urban areas.

Essential Energy, which operates powerlines in country NSW and parts of southern Queensland, wants NSW to follow Queensland's lead on introducing a cap on solar PV systems of 5kW to avoid power quality problems.

Endeavour Energy, which runs the network in Sydney's greater west, warns that some solar panel installers have not done voltage checks and other measurements to ensure the solar PV system operates adequately.

"The biggest problem we've got with the accelerated rollout is making sure every installation is fully compliant," Endeavour's general manager of network development, Ty Christopher, said.

Adelaide solar panel installer Chris Hart said the problems were worse in the summer months, when airconditioner use added to the stress on the system.

Mr Hart, who owns EcoSouth Solar Electricity, said areas with a lot of solar panels pushed the voltage up to the maximum allowable level, triggering shutdowns in the individual systems and taking the load off the grid.

He said solar systems "drop out for a few minutes" when voltages get too high, a phenomenon known as "tripping out".

"Then they try to come online again and it pushes the voltage up again and it's very wearing," he said. "That's the problem with having too much solar in an area where the local authority hasn't got enough wires or copper in the street to hold the voltage down."

Mr Hart said the size of conductors and cables in the streets would have to be upgraded "so it can handle lots of solar, versus times when there's lots of load and no solar".

Free Solar Panels Available to UK Households

Energy sector organisation EnergyLink has called on British households to act now and take advantage of the opportunity to dramatically reduce their carbon footprint, without spending a penny.

While many low carbon technologies such as wind turbines or heat pumps may be too expensive or impractical for the average UK consumer, free solar panels allow households to help protect the environment and make big savings on their energy bills.

An increasing number of solar panel companies across the UK are now willing to install and maintain solar energy systems for free. Properties which are privately owned and meet the criteria of having an unshaded roof space of at least 20 square metres facing South, South East or South West should qualify.

The solar installer receives payments called feed-in tariffs for the electricity generated by the system and the householder is able to significantly reduce their carbon footprint by receiving free electricity during daylight hours.

Another option is for householders to pay for the solar PV system and claim the feed-in tariff for themselves. However, not everyone has the capital available and neither can they raise it, so free solar panels are a viable solution for many.

It is estimated that each kilowatt of solar PV electricity generated will offset the production – by fossil fuel-generated power – of 16 kilos of nitrogen oxide, 9 kilos of sulphur oxides and 2,300 kilos of carbon dioxide. A typical free solar panel system is in the region of 3 to 4 kilowatts.

By signing up for free solar panels, UK homes will generate clean energy for at least 25 years after installation, which is the minimum amount of time the Government has agreed to continue the feed-in tariff scheme.

According to EnergyLink, not only will solar-powered households be playing a major role in contributing to a cleaner, more diversified energy mix for the UK, they will also be able to use energy during daytime hours without worrying about the environmental impact or the size of their energy bills.

Charging devices such as MP3 players, digital cameras, laptop and tablet computers and using timer-controlled devices such as washing machines and slow cookers can all be done during the day whether or not anyone is at home.

Those who spend much of their day at home can also use entertainment and work-related devices alongside lighting and heating with the peace of mind that they lowering their impact on the environment and saving on bills.

Installer defends Stoner

FORMER independent councillor Jamie Harrison has slammed the “Sydney media” over the reporting of Andrew Stoner’s solar panel installation.

Mr Harrison, owner of Harelec, which fitted The Nationals’ NSW deputy’s new system, said he had been bombarded with calls from newspapers, radio stations and television networks following an article in Friday’s Daily Telegraph.

The article claimed Mr Harrison had “admitted” backdating receipt of a deposit for Mr Stoner’s installation so the MP could avail of a 60c per kiloWatt feed-in tariff before it was phased out in favour of the NSW government’s new rate of 20c per kW.

The former councillor said Andrew Stoner had acted appropriately.

“He’s done everything right,” Mr Harrison told Port News.

“Andrew Stoner had an application [for a new solar panel system] in with Country Energy two weeks before the tariff deadline was announced.

“My staff had just 13 hours’ notice to contact all our customers about the change.”

A follow-up article in the Daily Telegraph on Saturday claimed Mr Harrison was a fully paid up member of The Nationals.

“They said I had been a candidate for The Nationals and I was a personal friend of Andrew Stoner. It’s that out of control.”

Mr Harrison said he had felt blackmailed into speaking to the Sydney media and claimed he would have been “dropped into this” affair, had he not agreed to give his side.

He refused to confirm or deny Mr Stoner’s deposit was paid after the deadline.