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"Following the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan is turning to renewable energy, and especially solar power, in a big way. By the end of 2012, Japan had already installed 7.4 gigawatts of solar power capacity, but that's set to double this year, according to analysts at Bloomberg New Energy Finance. This stellar pace of growth in solar power is set to make Japan the second-fastest growing solar market in the world, second only to neighboring China. It will also make the country the holder of the third-largest total installed solar capacity, behind Germany and Italy."

"This is a new installation of almost three-quarters of a million (749,088 to be exact) solar panels, which was completed just last week in San Luis Obispo County at the California Valley Solar Ranch. The massive solar panel project is a 250 megawatt facility, which is the equivalent of around 50,000 home solar systems."

"New figures from the Clean Energy Regulator show Hoppers Crossing, followed by Werribee and Cranbourne, are the top three suburbs by solar kilowatt capacity installed. The latest data debunks the widely circulating myth that solar power is a feel-good hobby for wealthy environmentalists. Advertisement And a new report by Roy Morgan Research shows that home solar is continuing to grow in popularity, despite cuts to incentives such as the feed-in tariff for selling solar-generated electricity back to the grid."

"Clean Energy Regulator data has been analysed by solar lobby group 100% renewable energy to show the breakdown of home solar installations by electorate in Australia, with estimates for capacity, dollars saved off power bills, and cost of installation. Explore the distribution of solar with this interactive map - use the drop-down menu to change between total and proportion, or click on an electorate for more detailed information."

"The largest coal company in the world, Coal India, is aiming to cut its own utility bills by installing solar photovoltaic panels at its facilities across the country. The coal giant is seeking proposals from solar energy companies to build a modular 2 megawatt solar plant on 9 acres of its own land. This plant could be scaled to export power to the grid."

"Australia's largest concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar power plant was officially opened today, with the Victorian energy minister joining executives from the plant's developer, Solar Systems, to cut the ribbon on the 1.5MW demonstration facility in Mildura. The demonstration of the "dense array" solar technology of parent company Silex Systems is a fore-runner for what is expected to be a 100MW power plant, with construction slated to begin in 2014. Another 1MW demonstration plant is being built in Saudi Arabia, with hopes of further development as that country pushes into the start of a $100 billion solar spending program"

"The "sunburnt country" of Australia has now passed the milestone of having a substantial 3 gigawatts of solar power installed, RenewEconomy has reported. That amounts to over 1.1 million (1,157,000) solar systems installed nationwide, on 14% of all dwellings. In the state of South Australia, 25% of households have solar installed. In the very sunny northern state of Queensland, solar has reached the 1 gigawatt mark, which amounts to 22% of dwellings."

Solar energy is on the agenda this election year. With over one million solar homes across the country, Australians are turning to the sun to generate power from clean, safe sources of energy. And with a natural resource like the sun so abundantly available, why wouldn't we?! Community organisation 100% Renewable, has developed this Solar Scorecard so you can see where your MP stands on renewable energy and how they compare on a number of key criteria.

"Australia's solar landmark Australian solar is celebrating a major milestone, with one million households now equipped with solar PV systems. By the end of 2008 we had less than 20,000 systems installed, illustrating the rapid proliferation of solar across the country. Since then the number of systems installed by year has surged ahead, with 63,378 installations in 2009, 196,308 in 2010, 335,067 in 2011 and 322,447 last year."

"Solar panels make energy, but they take energy to make, too. And, until about 2010 or so, the solar panel industry used more electricity than it produced, according to a new analysis. Now, the industry is set to "pay back" the energy it used by 2020."

"Here's a bright idea: what if, instead of paying for solar panels to keep your electricity bills down, you asked a solar company to put them on your roof for free, then paid them back with excess energy that you didn't need? Well, it's already happening. Solar panel installation with no upfront payments, paid off over several years from the money saved out of your power bills, began in Australia almost two years ago. In a few years, it is likely that companies will be competing with each other to pay you for the privilege of using your roof to generate electricity for your home."

"Australia is on the cusp of a solar energy revolution. First, a recent study suggests that the country could power its entire national domestic infrastructure using only solar (while slashing the price of home electricity by 70 percent). Now, the University of Melbourne has introduced a new organic PV cell printer that rolls out a functional binder page-sized sheet of solar panel every two seconds, making the production of all those cells cheaper and a whole lot faster."

"A team of researchers at Michigan State University has developed a new type of solar concentrator that when placed over a window creates solar energy while allowing people to actually see through the window. It is called a transparent luminescent solar concentrator and can be used on buildings, cell phones and any other device that has a clear surface. And, according to Richard Lunt of MSU's College of Engineering, the key word is "transparent.""

"Rooftop solar winners and losers, Published 9:35 AM, 6 May 2011 * Tags Australia, photovoltaics, rooftop solar, solar credits, solar PV, SRECs, Smart Energy - Giles Parkinson"

"Solar is not like other energy sources. Photovoltaic cells are a transformative technology, Alexis Madrigal, The Atlantic's senior technology editor, argues in the short video above. The faster the price of solar energy falls, the more viable it becomes as a source of clean power -- and the sooner we'll see it on roofs across America. Animated by Lindsey Testolin, this clip is part of a six-part video series in The User's Guide to Energy special report. "

"Protect the rights of millions of Australians with solar to cut bills, create clean power and take energy generation back into our own hands."

Solar Citizens is a new community project to bring together existing and future solar owners to ensure the rights of solar owners are protected and to help see Australia put a panel on every rooftop.

Clean Energy Week is Australia's biggest event for the renewable energy and energy efficiency industry, incorporating ATRAA (Australia's largest solar event), a huge trade exhibition, two awards programs and a clean energy debate on the 2013 conference theme of 'rethinking energy'. Hosted by the Clean Energy Council, Australia's peak industry body, the week delivers the latest news on policy initiatives and technology developments, as well as the opportunity to make valuable new contacts and close critical business deals. After drawing more than 2500 local and international delegates to Sydney for the 2012 event, Clean Energy Week is set to be even bigger when it comes to Brisbane from July 24 - 26 in 2013.

"Okay, sure, not literally every 4 minutes. However, solar systems are now being installed at the rate of 360 solar systems per day, according to GTM Research. That's 1 every 4 minutes if you average it out over a 24 hour day. Really, it's more than that because, I assume, most solar systems aren't being installed outside of normal working hours."

"Australia is set to get more solar power into the grid with two new large scale PV farms. AGL Energy Limited recently announced that two large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) projects have managed to secure funding thanks to agreements with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and the New South Wales (NSW) Government. The projects are expected to produce approximately 360,000 megawatt hours of electricity per year, which is enough to meet the needs of over 50,000 average homes in the Australian region of New South Wales."

"The fundamental transformation of energy markets brought about by the growing incursions of renewables such as wind and solar has been underlined in a new report by the European energy analysts at Macquarie Group, who have concluded that the plunge in costs for rooftop solar PV has fallen to such an extent that its continued rapid deployment may be unstoppable."