The Clear Vitality Regulator (CER) mentioned the rule change will afford firms extra flexibility.
The Clear Vitality Regulator, the Commonwealth authorities company accountable for overseeing Australia’s rooftop photo voltaic schemes, will now allow installations to be accomplished by totally different installers, so long as every installer is accredited and the company is notified.
From April 1, the Clear Vitality Regulator (CER) started requiring installers to take “selfie images” to show they have been current at first, center and finish of every job. This stepped up compliance regime was in response to a government review of the integrity of the rooftop solar sector in Australia printed final yr.
Whether or not the implications of this picture proof have led to as we speak’s announcement isn’t clear however CER did observe when it’s “not affordable” for a similar Clear Vitality Council (CEC) accredited installer to finish the job they started, it may in the end be signed off by one other accredited installer.
This transformation is accompanied by a set of situations, outlined by CER:
CER has been ramping up its prosecutions of installers fraudulently creating Small-scale Know-how Certificates, or STCs, which type the idea of what’s successfully Australia’s rooftop photo voltaic subsidy.
Simply final week, it introduced Canberra installer B and J Finnigan Pty Ltd (trading as A1 Electrical) had been convicted and fined $9,000 after it was found its sole director, Bradley Finnigan, was abroad on the time he mentioned he was supervising installations.
In Might, CER additionally executed search warrants on three Perth addresses connected to a WA installation company. The search warrants have been a part of its investigation into whether or not the corporate had fabricated details about who put in nearly 550 photo voltaic panel installations.
The crackdown is a part of CER’s takeover as the only real regulator of the sector, bringing with it a new suite of oversight tools.
CER is also in the process of finding a new accreditation body for the solar industry. Earlier than March 31, 2023, it can open up functions to determine who will take over accountability for photo voltaic accreditation from CEC.
