Aug 21 2009
Auzion, the Sustainable Energy Experts, have welcomed last night's news that the Australian Parliament has passed the important Renewable Energy Target (RET) legislation.
Auzion managing director Mark Leckenby said for those wanting to be more sustainable, the new RET legislation meant they could now apply for solar credits to reduce the cost of installing solar power.
Mark said this was great news for homeowners and the solar energy sector, which had been waiting since the sudden withdrawal of the solar rebate scheme on 9 June, for a new scheme to replace it.
"Solar grid connect power systems are a great solution for home owners or business operators wanting to be more sustainable and save money on their energy use," he said.
"Our solar 1.4KW photovoltaic grid connect system saves home owners on average about 25% of their energy costs, which taking into account the solar credits available, makes it possible to recoup their initial out-of-pocket investment on these systems within five years.
"Not only that, they will then continue to reap savings on the system, and know they have made a meaningful contribution in terms of environmental conservation and sustainability."
Mark said since 9 June Auzion had already had more than 80 customers register for a new solar system.
"We were just waiting for the RET legislation to pass so we could begin lodging their applications," he said.
He said there had been uncertainty created about solar credits because of the sudden withdrawal of the previous grant scheme and because the RET legislation was originally presented to Parliament as part of a package with the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) which was voted down in the Senate last week.
"We have always been in support of the Government's move to the new solar credit scheme which has some benefits compared with the old rebate.
"There is no income cap on solar credits so everyone is eligible and the delays created by the rebate application process will be eliminated," he said.
Mark said Auzion were so excited about the new RET leglisation being passed that they were going to continue for a limited time, Auzion's own rebate, which they introduced for those who missed out on the old rebate scheme.
"This will help ensure customers who haven't yet registered for a system can still maximise their savings even more."
The Auzion rebate of $2000 on a fully installed 1.4KW, added to Solar Credit Scheme, means the cost to householders will be just $3995.
"All people will pay upfront is $195, with an option to pay the balance via a green loan, with the energy savings people will get offsetting the loan repayments," Mr Leckenby said.
Mr Leckenby said Auzion had also developed the AuziMAX energy maximiser system, now in its pilot phase, to help people save even more on their energy costs.
The AUZiMAX is an optional add-on to the system which allows the home owner to log into a web portal to monitor their energy usage, set automatic email alerts on excessive consumption, and enable smart switching of loads to maximise the amount of solar energy fed back into the grid. On the web portal, homeowners can also at a glance monitor the levels of renewable and conventional power they are using.
"The software also provides a breakdown of where they are using the energy and when it is being used and allows the homeowner to set an energy budget, which will trigger automatic email and SMS alerts to tell them when they are getting close to the limits they set," Mark said.
He said Auzion preliminary research had shown the AUZiMAX saved customers an additional 20% energy saving, on top of the savings from the solar power installation.