Age
Thursday 13/11/2008 Page: 8
ORGANISERS and participants of the Asia-Pacific region's leading conference on renewable energy have expressed exasperation at the Rudd Government's failure to support their interests while spending billions on the car and coal industries. There was also confusion about whether Environment Minister Peter Garrett or any other minister would open the International Solar Energy Society's 3rd Asia-Pacific conference or attend any of its sessions in Sydney this month.
A member of the organising committee, Dr Muriel Watt, said Mr Garrett had said he could not attend, even though the committee offered to move the opening to allow Mr Garrett to return to Canberra in time to attend parliament. "We beat our heads against a wall even to get a minister to talk with its while the car industry and the coal industry get as much attention as they want," Dr Watt, the Australian Photovoltaic Association chairwoman, said.
However, a spokesman for Mr Garrett said the organisers had been advised "that the minister's attendance is subject to being able to get leave from Parliament". About 300 scientists, manufacturers and renewable energy industry leaders from throughout Asia, Australia and New Zealand will attend the conference.
Dr Watt is to deliver a paper that argues that while the world market in photovoltaics - solar cells that convert sunlight into electricity - had grown at more than 35% a year for the past decade, generating $US17.2 billion last year, Australia's participation in the industry had become increasingly irrelevant, despite pioneering research and manufacturing.
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