http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/...atteries-improve/story-fnn8dlfs-1227166673639
The only problem with this story from the Courier Mail is that they seriously over estimate costs, bad research knows no bounds, however Newmans lease option is as good as dead in the water.
Consumers to pull plug on power companies as solar batteries improve
- Kelmeny Fraser
- The Courier-Mail
- December 26, 2014 12:00AM
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Government rethinks asset sale plans
FED-UP households have warned the Newman Government they are prepared to abandon the energy grid to escape big bills as the prospect of producing their own power becomes a reality.
State Energy Department officers are examining the implications of household solar energy battery storage amid predictions of a mass take-up within a decade.
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Solar industry representatives estimate the cost of battery storage units, which enable households to generate and store solar power to use day or night, will plummet in five to 10 years.
Solar Energy Industries Association spokesman Geoff Bragg said this would lead many people to go “off the grid”, a trend he said government and industry had underestimated.
It poses questions about the viability of the state-owned $24 billion power network, which is earmarked by the LNP for privatisation.
People have written to the State Government threatening to abandon the grid to escape rises in their electricity bills, with price rises proposed for the next five years.
It is big business for the solar industry, which in August formed the Australian Energy Storage Council to advance the uptake of energy storage solutions.
A new giant lithium-ion battery factory being built by Tesla Motors in Nevada is also expected to make a significant dent in the price of solar storage battery systems around the world.
The CSIRO says going “off grid” will be economically viable from 2030, and then disconnecting will be a “mainstream option”.
Mr Bragg said the cost of becoming self-reliant – currently $30,000-$60,000 – could fall rapidly with demand for electric vehicles.
The boss of state-owned power corporation Ergon, Ian McLeod, identified people going “off the grid” as a risk when addressing a Brisbane forum on electricity network charges this month.
