Climate action UTS going solar

Project summary

The rapid transition to renewable energy is essential to help address climate change. In 2014 UTS made the decision to invest directly in solar energy to meet our electricity requirements. To date 599 PV solar panels have been installed on six UTS campus buildings, supplying 1279 kW of power. As we have now maximised the University’s potential for on-site solar UTS is installing 2520 PV panels on our Tech Labs in Botany in an innovative roof licensing agreement with the landlord, Dexus, producing an additional 1279 kW of power.

In an Australian first, UTS signed a Power Purchase Agreement in 2015 with a solar farm in Singleton to facilitate direct power purchasing from solar farms in rural NSW. So far, two solar farms – one in the Hunter Valley and one in Orange – supply UTS with electricity and the university is currently in the final stages of negotiations to build a new large scale solar farm that will provide up to 50% of the university’s electricity when completed in 2024.

UTS is aiming to decarbonise as rapidly as possible and is currently developing a pathway towards net-zero with greenhouse gas intensity targets, scope 1, 2 and 3 targets and renewable electricity targets.

Project timeframe

2014 – 2024

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SDG targets addressed by this project

Affordable and clean energy:

7.2 - By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.

 

 

Climate action:

13.3 - Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning.

Back to SDG 7 Affordable and clean energy

Back to SDG 13 Climate action