Nation’s top solar university commits to 100% renewable energy

The nation’s top solar university research hub, the University of New South Wales (UNSW), in Sydney, has announced it will switch to 100 per cent renewable energy by 2020. Underpinning the goal is a 15-year power-purchase-agreement with the Sunraysia solar farm in western NSW. The PPA is a tripartite arrangement with project developer Maoneng and Origin Energy. The agreement will see UNSW purchase the 124,000 MWh solar electricity required to meet its yearly energy needs. Origin has also signed a three-year firming contract to manage the intermittency of solar generation. Announced last year, the University believes the deal is a world first for the education sector. “This landmark initiative is an exciting step towards realising UNSW’s goal of carbon neutrality on energy use by 2020,” said Vice Chancellor Ian Jacobs. Expanding solar capacity towards UNSW’s zero carbon goal. The commitment is part of the UNSW’s Environmental Sustainability Plan 2019-21 (ESP). In 2018, the University expanded its onsite solar PV capacity to 800 kW – enough to power 160 homes. The ESP will then expand this capacity to 1.2 MW of rooftop solar power by 2022.