Sunshine state lives up to its name in solar State of Origin

In a solar-powered State of Origin, New South Wales has beaten Queensland for the title of Australia’s solar state, according to the Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator. Queensland finished close behind NSW, with 158,000 households having solar power systems installed by the end of 2011, compared with 163,000 in NSW.

The Sunshine State certainly lived up to its name, with Queensland households installing 38,000 solar power systems in 2011 alone. Solar power was most popular in coastal areas, regional towns and outer Brisbane suburbs.

“Solar power makes a lot of sense to consumers and we welcome the fact that the new Queensland Government has committed to continuing its support for household solar power,” said Kane Thornton, Clean Energy Council acting Chief Executive.

“With the price of panels now about a third of what they were just three years ago, many people see solar power as a way to save on their energy bills as well as do something for the environment.

“We now have more than half a million solar power systems in Australia, but really we are just in the early stages of tapping into the power of this technology,” he added.

“Solar panels are fast becoming the Hills Hoist of the 21st century.”