Electricity is fed into the grid when the household uses less energy than is being generated from renewable energy. Electricity is drawn from the grid at times when the household needs more energy than the renewable energy can supply. To fill the gaps in supply, electricity can come from storage systems (for example, batteries), fossil-fuelled generators (for example, petrol or diesel) in stand-alone systems, or the electricity grid in grid-connected systems.Ī grid-connected system is a system that can import electricity from, or export electricity to, the electricity grid. Renewable energy systems are usually not able to provide continual energy because of the intermittent nature of some of the energy sources (for example, sunlight and wind). Renewable systems that generate electricity can be either connected to the grid, or operate as a stand-alone system. Increasing the share of renewable electricity being used to power households and the electricity grid will reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Types of renewable energy Renewable electricityĮlectricity accounts for more than 53% of the energy used in Australian households and creates around 84% of residential greenhouse gas emissions (Energy Consult 2022). Renewable energy systems usually operate with minimal running costs, often paying for themselves in lower energy bills in the short to medium term. The importance of managing, storing, and optimising renewable energy will grow, as these resources play an increasing role in the generation of energy for our homes. One in 4 households now have solar panels on their roof – the highest uptake of household solar in the world (Clean Energy Regulator, 2020). Renewable energy systems that generate renewable electricity have high rates of adoption by homeowners across Australia. Renewable energy systems are a significant investment for most people, but equipment costs have been falling considerably in recent years, especially for solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. Renewable energy systems can produce electricity, heating or cooling with very low to zero greenhouse gas emissions. Renewable systems offer economic, health and environmental benefits. Hydropower uses the energy stored in elevated water.įor residential applications, the most likely renewable energy sources to be harnessed are solar for electricity, heating and hot water, and geothermal and bioenergy for heating. Bioenergy uses the energy stored in plant matter. Geothermal energy can be produced from heat differences between the surface and underground, while marine energy can be produced through either seawater heat differences, or wave action and tides. Wind power is generated by using the wind to turn the blades of a wind turbine. Solar energy is carried by radiation from the sun. Solar, wind, geothermal, marine, bioenergy, and hydropower are all types of renewable energy. Sources of energy are regarded as renewable if their use does not cause them to be depleted.
You can manage your energy use to maximise the efficiency of your renewable energy system.They should be installed by an accredited installer. Renewable energy systems should be carefully designed to suit your household size and energy use.Other renewable systems include wind generators, micro-hydro generators, and biomass heaters (where the biomass is from a sustainable source such that carbon lost through burning is replaced by equivalent amount of regrowth).The most common renewable energy systems used in Australian homes are solar photovoltaic (PV) systems to produce electricity, air source heat pumps and solar hot water systems.Renewable energy provides many benefits including economic (reducing energy costs), health (reducing air pollution), and environmental (reducing greenhouse gas emissions).
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