Australia could become the world’s first continent powered by 100 per cent clean energy, a global solar expert claims.

But according to clean energy entrepreneur Yosef Abramowitz, known as ‘Captain Sunshine’, Australia’s entrenched fossil fuel industry is blocking the nation’s renewable potential.

The CEO of Israeli-American clean energy company Energiya Global, Abramowitz is ranked in the top six of the world’s leading clean energy pioneers by CNN.

And Abramowitz is highlighting Australia’s failure to optimise the country’s extraordinary solar potential. Because solar energy accounts for just over 5 per cent of Australia’s total power generation, it’s drastically under-utilised, he says.

Solar power critical to achieve 100 per cent clean energy

Abramowitz also told WA Today that stronger political support and policy frameworks will strengthen Australia’s solar markets.

Because investors need commitment, the government should consider phasing out coal-fired power plants and using Australia’s vast gas resources during the transition to renewables.

Australia has the world’s highest average solar radiation, according to Abramowitz. This equals 58 million petajoules of energy or around 10,000 times the national annual energy consumption.

He also points out we have vast tracts of land available for solar farms. The size of farm needed to power the whole country, however, is surprisingly small. It comes to 6,270 square kilometres or about 0.1 per cent of Australia’s land surface.

Given Australia’s ‘amazing’ land, solar and wind resources, the government should therefore commit to a goal of 100 per cent renewable energy, Abramowitz says.

Challenges of pushing for 100 per cent solar power

Despite the benefits of solar PV, the solar power revolution is facing its share of challenges.

These include the intermittency of wind and solar power generation. However, increasing battery storage uptake means users can draw on solar storage batteries when the sun isn’t shining. This then boosts the reliability of the grid.

Increasing uptake of home battery storage systems like sonnen and Tesla Powerwall also means consumers are not paying large electricity bills. Because electricity bills pay for the distribution network, costs may fall disproportionately on those without solar power.