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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-10-14 Daily Xml
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Parliamentary Committees

PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE: ADELAIDE SHOWGROUND PHOTOVOLTAIC PROJECT

Ms CICCARELLO (Norwood) (11:03): I move:

That the 331st report of the committee, entitled Adelaide Showground Photovoltaic Project, be noted.

With less than 8 per cent of the nation's population, South Australia has about 58 per cent of its wind capacity and about 32 per cent of the grid connected domestic photovoltaic capacity. As part of the government's policy of supporting demonstration programs, it is proposed to install the largest roof-mounted solar system in Australia at Adelaide Showground. A one megawatt solar photovoltaic installation interpretive display has been constructed through a grant awarded to the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society by the government.

The Adelaide Showground has been identified as the preferred location for the solar installation because it has large roof spaces covering about 10,000 square metres and is visited by over one million people annually. The buildings/pavilions to accommodate the solar panels include the Goyder Pavilion, Jubilee Pavilion, Wayville Pavilion, Ridley Centre, Alpaca Pavilion and Dairy Cattle Pavilion.

The society has separately funded an interpretive display promoting the benefits of solar voltaic systems to the South Australian public. A prominent signage project will include a main street sign on Goodwood Road and other interpretive signage features in the northern plaza area north of the Goyder Pavilion. The main street sign will, in real time, indicate the benefits and outputs of the photovoltaic system and the level of water in the underground stormwater storage tanks on the Adelaide Showground site.

The interpretive signage will showcase the outputs of the environmentally sustainable systems operating in the Showground. For example, LED images will denote the equivalent carbon emissions reduction of the solar power system with the equivalent number of cars that could be taken off the roads or houses that could be powered.

The contractor was required to design a system that met a guaranteed one megawatt peak system output and guaranteed annual yield range. The design also considered requirements for modifications to roof framing structures to accommodate the increased weight of the solar PV panels and framing. The new Goyder Pavilion boasts a number of energy efficiency principles in its design. The solar project will enhance these and assist the whole site in reducing energy demand from non-renewable sources. The overarching environmentally sustainable objectives of the project are to:

raise public awareness of the environmental benefits of renewable energy and promote/reinforce environmentally sustainable values, objectives and initiatives in place at the Showground;

maximise the output of the solar power system with optimum panel orientation and incline;

provide accurate metering of electricity being produced and electricity being fed into the electricity grids; and

significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions for the lifecycle of the solar photovoltaic system.

Establishing a large scale solar photovoltaic system in metropolitan Adelaide is the next natural progression in pursuing a comprehensive understanding of these technologies. The capacity of the system is approximately nine times that at the Adelaide Airport, and both the grid infrastructure and the physical layout will provide sufficient challenges to deliver appropriate learning.

The project is expected to generate approximately 1,400 megawatt hours of electricity annually. This is approximately 30 per cent of the electricity requirement at the Adelaide Showground. It will also achieve a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to that produced by approximately 200 households. The revenue from renewable energy credits is estimated to be approximately $70,000 annually. The environmental and financial benefits will be promoted with the public and industry, together with promotion of the technological and organisational solutions developed in overcoming any challenges in delivering the project.

A cost benefit analysis estimates that the net present value amounts to approximately minus $6 million. However, due to price uncertainties, the cost of carbon has not been included, and this would further support the project. An additional cost benefit analysis undertaken prior to establishing the tender scope tested the estimated performance of the system with varying degrees of panel tilt support. The results were used to scope the most cost-effective solution to maximise the power output.

This project is funded under a grants and subsidies allocation in the 2007-08 Department of the Premier and Cabinet operating budget. The funds were transferred to the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society through a funding agreement on 19 June 2008. The project capital cost is $7.36 million (excluding GST), with a further cost of approximately $1 million to cover professional costs and contingencies. The project budget has been granted by the Department of the Premier and Cabinet to the value of $8 million. The balance of the total cost of $8.4 million is to be met from interest accrued by the society since the grant was made.

The construction was completed in August 2009, and the Premier recently officially opened the project. I am pleased to say that the Solar Shop, which is in my electorate, was the contractor responsible for the solar panels. I would like to commend Mr Adrian Ferraretto, the owner of the Solar Shop, which is the biggest of its kind in the southern hemisphere.

Based upon the evidence it has considered and pursuant to section 12C of the Parliamentary Committees Act 1991, the Public Works Committee reports to parliament that it recommends the proposed public work.

Mr PENGILLY (Finniss) (11:08): I rise to indicate my support for this project. Indeed, it is a good project. The point needs to be made that this project never would have taken place had it not been for the remarkably generous donation by the former Howard Liberal federal government towards the Goyder Pavilion at the Adelaide Showground. In fact, at the time, I think it was the finance minister, Senator Minchin, who made the announcement and got this thing off the ground after the sad demise of the much-loved Centennial Hall.

It was significant that this project did go ahead. It was also extremely significant that the water tanks that went underneath it and the photovoltaic cells that went on top of it in the final analysis came to fruition. It was a good project. It is all there and working well. I spent some time there during the recent Royal Adelaide Show. It is a great building. The very fact that we are harvesting energy from the sun and using it in the manner for which it was devised is good but, if it had not been for the former federal Howard Liberal coalition government, it probably would never have taken place.

I note that all those on the government side of the benches rushed down to the opening to have a jolly good time, but it needs to be put well and truly on the record that this only came about because of the contribution made by the former federal Howard Liberal government. It is a good project. I listened with interest to what the member for Norwood had to say. There was no dissension at the Public Works Committee over this project, and we followed it with interest. I support the project.

The Hon. S.W. KEY (Ashford) (11:11): I am very pleased to support this report from the Public Works Committee. As members would know, the Royal Show is held at the Adelaide Showground in Wayville, which is in the electorate of Ashford. As we are very concerned in the electorate of Ashford to make sure that we promote sustainable and alternative energy, it has been really important for the Adelaide Showground to be a bit of a showcase for the rest of the community.

Having been to the show a number of times—in fact, I am a member of the Royal Society, the only Royal Society of which I am a member, being a republican—I am very impressed with the work that the Royal Show has been involved with. Certainly, the workers at the show have been very supportive of the different projects, particularly community projects, that have been put forward to try to enhance our area, one of them being the subway project (about which I have talked in this house before), where we are looking at Goodwood Road and particularly the Millswood underpass as an art space. I am pleased to say that the show is right behind us in looking at Goodwood Road as an entry point into the city and also as an exit point into the south. So, we really appreciate their support on that project.

There have been a number of other areas in which the showgrounds have now become a place where community organisations are able to look at that space. I think one of the attractions is the fact that there is this commitment to sustainable energy and also, as the members for Finniss and Norwood mentioned, the fact that there has been a big commitment to re-using the water that flows under the show. This has been a problem for quite some time, and it is good to see that the showgrounds are going to move closer to being self-sufficient in regard to the use of the water in that very big space.

It is an important part of our community. The farmers market has been a great initiative and, of course, we all know the delight of going to the show. I, along with other members of this place, was very privileged a couple of weeks ago to go to the launch of the first Glendi at the Adelaide Showground. It is interesting to see not only organisations that have not necessarily thought of the showgrounds as a venue for their very big events in the past now looking at the beautiful Goyder Pavilion but also the different initiatives that have taken place in the showgrounds.

I congratulate all those who have been involved in making this, as I said, a showcase of sustainability. I also pay special tribute to the Premier because I know that he has been one of the initial ministers—if not the first—to have taken up the issue of climate change. Part of that whole agenda has included solar energy and looking at what we do with our stormwater. There is certainly room for improvement, but we are actually looking at that area and making sure that we look at re-using greywater, and other really important sustainable initiatives. I have been very proud of the fact that South Australia is up there in the international sphere in this area.

While members on the other side would probably say that it is typical of a Labor member to congratulate their leader, their Premier, this is an issue that is very important. Members in this place would know that we now have solar and photovoltaic energy in many of our big institutions; Parliament House is one, and there is also the State Library, as well as others along the North Terrace promenade. We are leading the way, and I am very proud that, particularly in the case of the Adelaide Showground, the electorate of Ashford gets to show the way as well.

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (11:15): I, too, am a member of the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society, and I love the annual show; it is fantastic. I commend the photovoltaic project there, as well as the water capture program, which involves large storage tanks under the new building. That is also fantastic.

The other great thing that I have noticed is that the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society is showing the way by planting native trees in its grounds fronting Goodwood Road. I have not looked at them closely, but from a distance they look like corymbia maculata or corymbia citriodora. It is a lesson that could be followed by the Adelaide City Council in terms of what it should be planting in greater numbers in the CBD.

I congratulate all those involved in this project, and I wish the show society all the best for the future.

Ms CICCARELLO (Norwood) (11:17): I would like to thank members for their contribution, and say that yes, it is a fantastic project. For the benefit of the member for Ashford I would like to point out that the Italian community had the initiative to go to the showgrounds for Carnevale earlier this year, and that, having seen the success of that event, the Glendi committee decided to go there as well. We now hope that other communities will look at those facilities as being ideal for their events, because many of our festivals are held in very hot weather and the Goyder Pavilion now offers a great facility with air conditioning.

Motion carried.

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