The mortgage belt suburbs and the bush are where solar power truly shines. REC Agents Association (RAA) has expanded on an earlier submission prepared for the Climate Change Authority in relation to Australia’s Renewable Energy Target review that conclusively busted the myth of solar being the realm of rich city dwellers.
In its geographical analysis of solar energy systems under the Renewable Energy Target, RAA states suburbs with the highest penetration were typically in the outer metropolitan mortgage belt.
The RAA lists the six top solar suburbs as being:
- Coodanup, Western Australia - 30 per cent (9,463 systems)
- Abbotsford, Queensland - 26 per cent of houses (9,029 systems)
- Booral Queensland - 34 per cent of houses (8,823 systems)
- Cocoroc Queensland - 29 per cent of houses (8,426 systems)
- Hoppers Crossing, Victoria - 34 per cent of houses (8,138 systems)
- Bentley, New South Wales - 39 per cent of (7,763 systems)
The organisation notes some houses may have solar panels and solar hot water systems installed, meaning the penetration rate could be slightly lower.
The average annual gross income of solar households across Australia is estimated to be $60,216 a year.
The full report includes a table of the top 20 solar PV and solar hot water suburbs by state.
In a related research note, RAA says the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES) has resulted in 1.5 million solar systems being installed by Australian families up until June 30 this year. Of this number, 753,844 were solar panels systems and 743,842 were solar hot water systems.
It says the cost impact of the SRES will drop to less than 1 per cent of residential electricity prices when the Solar Credits multiplier is totally phased out in 10 months from now
The REC Agents Association (RAA) was established in late 2011 and acts on behalf of agents registered with the Clean Energy Regulator (CER).
Solar Trivia: Only 118 households had installed solar panel systems 2001.
