Solar Rock & Roll - From Terry D. McGee

Penny Wong, the Australian Labor minister for Climate Change is claiming that the new family income cap on the solar cell rebate for homes is working - that there's been a record number of solar sales since the cap was announced in May 08. But is this spin or do I have to admit I was too critical?

I rang some businesses that install solar cells and discovered that sales have been down in most states except for Queensland where there has been a surge in sales. That's because in Queensland the state electricity authorities are paying a high "feed in tariff" to the homeowners for the excess electricity their small system feeds back into the electricity grid - a bit like the German system (where you can make a profit on your system). The Queensland system is not that generous but it is increasing sales. What if every Labor state did it? What if Penny made sure they did? I'll ask her tonight at a public forum in Petersham, Sydney.

Across the rest of Australia many people cancelled their orders but there's been an increase in the number of retirees buying. Their income has dropped below the cap so they can get the $8,000 rebate. And some who cancelled say they'll be back in a year or two when they retire. Ah, there's that baby boomer generation again - rock and roll on a solar cell.