Don't cut off ARENA grant funding, solar scientists urge

Martin Green and Andrew Blakers, said to be Australia’s two top solar cell researchers, have called on both major political parties not to unintentionally kill solar cell research in Australia by cutting off grant funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

Since its establishment in 2012, ARENA has furnished $1 billion to 250 renewable energy commercialisation projects, including 155 MW solar farms in Broken Hill and Nyngan, and the world-first grid connected wave power array in Perth. It has also kickstarted a wave of research that has accelerated renewable technology in Australia.

The scientists claim that plans by the Turnbull government to revoke ARENA’s ability to issue research grants — and return $1.3 billion of its unspent funds to consolidated revenue — will stall promising advances that can deliver major gains in efficiency and economic benefits to the country. Meanwhile, the Opposition has not committed to retain ARENA’s grant funding, promising only to reserve $305 million of the unspent funds for large solar thermal demonstration projects.

“I don’t think this is a deliberate attempt to wipe out research into photovoltaics in this country — it’s more a case that the implications have slipped below the radar — but that’s what could happen,” said Green, a pioneer of solar cells and director of UNSW’s Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics.

“Continuity in funding is essential in solar cell research, so if you lose your funding for even a year or so, a lot of your expertise disappears as teams are disbanded. Our researchers would find employment overseas very easily, and we’d lose that expertise.”

Blakers, from the Australian National University (ANU), stated that Australia “has a tremendous track record of leadership in photovoltaics”, with photovoltaics and wind energy combined accounting for all new generation capacity being installed in the country every year.

“Severe curtailment of ARENA grants will cause loss of that leadership, loss of commercial opportunities, loss of hundreds of jobs and severe downscaling of PhD and undergraduate student opportunities,” he said.

UNSW and ANU are global leaders in solar cell research, which have brought well over $8 billion in economic benefits to Australia in the past decade, according to a recent report produced by Green. Gains in efficiency made possible by PERC cells, invented at UNSW by Blakers, Green and others, are forecast to save $750 million in Australia’s electricity generation over the next 10 years.

“It is important to continue and accelerate research and development spending to support the renewable energy revolution now underway,” said Blakers. “Photovoltaics and wind energy are fundamentally reshaping the way economies of the world are powered, so it’s a critical time for Australia to stay in the game if it is to reap further benefits from its leading position in research and education.”

Last month, 62 senior energy researchers wrote an open letter to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull calling on his government to reverse its decision to end the grant funding by ARENA. Recently, 130 more researchers and 61 undergraduate students wrote to Environment Minister Greg Hunt making the same call.

Image caption: Martin Green.