Household solar shift sees electricity demand drop and taxpayers stuck with ‘stranded assets’ – Business – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Australia’s household solar revolution has caught the energy sector by surprise, and may leave NSW and Queensland taxpayers footing the bill for billions of dollars worth of “stranded assets”.
More than a million Australians have already installed solar panels on their roofs, causing demand for electricity from the grid to plummet.
For decades demand for electricity had grown, a trend the industry and government banked on.
Energy economist Greg Houston describes the solar take up as “a once-in-a-generation shift”.
“I don’t think there’s been anything like this that’s affected the energy market in the last 50 years,” Mr Houston said.
