How cheap is solar? Cheap enough, says the head of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, to drive the transformation of our grid to zero emissions. Cheap enough, he says, to inspire some people to install air conditioners on their verandah to cool the air outside the house, as well as inside.

An analysis of the big electricity price surges during the February heatwave in New South Wales suggests that rooftop solar on homes and businesses across the state likely reduced the market price of wholesale electricity by nearly $1 billion over three days.

Australia might be a world leader in rooftop solar penetration, but according to a new Sydney-focused study, we are only just scratching the surface of our true small-scale solar potential, particularly in the nation’s major cities.

It was hardly surprising that former prime minister John Howard was having a cheap shot at climate and clean energy policies last week, telling an audience in Perth about the “scandalous” clean energy policies in Australia and why the country should never have gone beyond his target of just 2 per cent renewable energy.