Thursday, May 21, 2009

SOLAR ENERGY CASE STUDY: Australia to Lead the Way in Solar Thermal Energy

Thermal energy plantImage by jje via Flickr

Australia to Lead the Way in Solar Thermal Energy by Garfield B Hodgson

Australia has the lot when it comes to generating solar thermal energy. It has the climate, the research expertise and the finance to carry out these projects.

Australia is a hot country with plenty of sunshine all year round. It used to be a world leader in solar energy. But in recent times it has lost that position due to a lack of investment and general apathy. But now it has a chance to shine again with solar thermal energy. Despite a lack of investment, Australia still has some of the best solar experts in the world and there's still cutting-edge research being done in this country.

Solar thermal energy is often left out of the solar power equation. But in Australia it holds tremendous promise.

Internationally, the solar industry is growing quickly by around 30% per year. And although domestically, Australia has slipped behind the likes of Germany and Japan in solar PV and solar water heating, it is in solar thermal energy where the leaders see a bright future. Solar thermal energy is quite different to solar hot water and photovoltaics. But it's cheap and operates on a far larger scale. Huge solar thermal plants use heat from the sun to create steam, which drives giant turbines which in turn generate electricity.

And in Australia it's shaping up to be a serious contender in the race to compete with traditional fuels such as coal. In fact, some experts claim that solar thermal energy could be Australia's main energy source by 2050.

And there is no reason to not to believe this. With cutting-edge technology, no shortage of finance and lots of hot sunny days, Australia is perfectly primed to take advantage of the developing solar thermal boom.

I run and maintain the popular solar energy website http://www.totalsolarenergy.co.uk. For more information on solar power in Australia.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Garfield_B_Hodgson
http://EzineArticles.com/?Australia-to-Lead-the-Way-in-Solar-Thermal-Energy&id=2267441

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