AAP General News (Australia)
12-08-2010
QLD:Report shows Qld's solar potential
BRISBANE, Dec 8 AAP - Large-scale solar precincts could be built in Queensland after
a study found the state has some of the best conditions for such projects.
A pre-feasibility report commissioned by the state government and the Clinton Climate
Initiative has examined the opportunities for solar plants in Queensland, finding the
state had better sunshine than places where such projects already exist.
Other key findings were that large-scale solar projects would be technically and environmentally
feasible, particularly if constructed in a "precinct" to share infrastructure costs like
transmission and expedite the approvals process.
It said combining solar power with other energy sources such as existing fossil fuel
generation might assist the economics of deploying commercial-scale, solar power technology.
Premier Anna Bligh said the report showed the quality of Queensland's solar resource
was superior to regions like Nevada in the US and Granada in Spain where large-scale solar
generation already occurred.
"These two locations are well known as current world leaders in solar thermal development
and we now know Queensland can match them," she said.
Ms Bligh said the report had given a better understanding of what it would take for
such projects in solar-rich regions, including central and northwest Queensland and the
Surat Basin, as the state strove for a cleaner energy future.
"This information will assist industry in determining locations that might best suit
their solar solutions and investment aspirations," she said.
But opposition energy spokesman Jeff Seeney said the government was "embracing the
silly season" by announcing Queensland was blessed with sunshine.
He said Labor's solar policies were about generating "feel good headlines", not about
acting to develop sustainable electricity.
AAP jmm/crh/dep
KEYWORD: SOLAR
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