MEDIA RELEASE 
25 May 2016

Angle Vale top solar town in Australia

A new report shows SA continues to lead the pack on renewable energy, with 4 of the top 9 solar postcodes in Australia, including Angle Vale in top spot with 65%.

However, the Game On: The Australian Renewable Energy Race Heats Up report from the Climate Council also finds that while South Australia has by far the highest proportion of wind and solar in the nation, Queensland (with 29.6%) has just overtaken South Australia (28.8%) as the leading state for household PV.

The Climate Council report finds that 'rooftop solar could soon be as common as home insulation'. and, in defiance of a common myth that Government solar policies have favoured the well off, suburbs with highest levels of rooftop solar PV generally have low to medium income levels and tend to be located in the outer metropolitan 'mortgage belt', or in regional areas. 

“South Australia can continue to be incredibly proud about our clean energy performance,” Conservation SA Chief Executive Craig Wilkins said.

“The latest report from the Climate Council shows just how well we are doing. We are a world leader in the energy of the future.

"This is something to celebrate. And despite recent media commentary about our renewables pushing up household electricity prices, our success provides an enormous economic opportunity.

“The fact is that South Australia has always paid more for electricity than other states, but that gap has narrowed significantly since the advent of wind and solar.

“We are now entering a transitional stage where low wholesale prices from the extra competition from wind and solar are pushing out more expensive fossil fuel operators. This is exactly how the electricity grid transforms from dirtier to cleaner sources of electricity, which we urgently need to do to tackle climate change.

“However we also need to manage the transition carefully to ensure our power supply remains reliable, and the benefits are shared by all SA electricity customers.

Contact: Meg Sobey, Communications, 0411 028 930