But DCCEEW did announce later on Thursday afternoon that the\u00a0House of Representatives Standing Committee on Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water\u00a0will hold a public hearing on Monday, as part of its\u00a0inquiry into solar panel reuse and recycling<\/a>. <\/p>\n Environment minister Murray Watt says the government remains committed to the pilot.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to see the pilot commence as soon as possible,\u201d he said in a statement sent to Renew Economy.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cGetting the rollout of the pilot right is really important \u2013 it\u2019s crucial we have a sustainable and effective national solution to recycling end-of-life solar panels.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water is working to appoint an administrator.\u201d<\/p>\n The fully-funded, $24.7 million pilot was supposed to start earlier this month and last for a year, setting up 100 collection sites around the country and making recycling financially viable by paying for panels.\u00a0<\/p>\n It is intended to inform both New South Wales (NSW) regulations, the state leading the push for a recycling industry, and a future stewardship scheme.\u00a0<\/p>\n Recyclers, such as industry leader James Petesic at PV Industries, warn that if the delay continues for \u201ctoo many months\u201d the industry will wither away<\/a>, removing Australia\u2019s ability to get any value from the precious metals and parts contained in what some once-hopefully called the country\u2019s next resource boom.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n Already a number of recyclers have succumbed to the industry\u2019s main problem, a lack of feedstock.\u00a0<\/p>\n Among the casualties are Reclaim PV in 2023, and Sircel late last year, itself joining the industry when it bought the solar recycling assets of bankrupt Scipher Technologies for $5 million in May 2024.<\/p>\n On Monday, the standing committee will hear from industry representatives, recycling businesses and local government about the growing challenge of managing end-of-life solar panels, and the opportunities to build a circular economy around reuse, recycling and the recovery of valuable materials.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are interested in hearing evidence on the barriers currently facing the sector, including the high cost of recycling compared to landfill disposal, the absence of a national product stewardship scheme, inconsistent regulations across jurisdictions, and the challenges of attracting investment in recycling infrastructure,\u201d says Committee chair,\u00a0Anne Urquhart MP.<\/p>\n The public hearing starts at 9am on Monday August 03 and is expected to run until 2pm, at Parliament House in Canberra.<\/p>\n
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