Silver lining: Australian researchers given $45m to study alternative solar panel materials

Australian scientists say solar photovoltaic energy is one of the few ways the world will be able to reduce emissions from energy use at a fast enough pace to head off climate change. Photograph: David Trood/Getty Images

The Albanese government has extended funding for Australia’s world-leading solar energy scientists as they race to increase panel efficiency and shift to more abundant materials, before constraints on silver and other metals hobble the industry’s growth.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency will announce on Friday it will grant $45m over the next eight years to the University of NSW-based Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics. Most of the money will be spent within the first five years.