1,836 solar installations registered with the Clean Energy Regulator · ranked top 50% in Queensland · data current as at 2026-05-15
Based on last week's Queensland grid mix (avg 810 gCO₂/kWh), Cairns's 1,836 solar systems typically avoid around 11.38 tonnes of CO₂ every hour during peak generation.
Grid intensity data: Open Electricity (openelectricity.org.au) · 7-day average · updates monthly
Cairns ranks 180th in Queensland for solar installations — in the middle tier of 449 postcodes tracked by the Clean Energy Regulator across the state. New installations eased in the past 12 months (129 systems, 7% below the previous year), a natural slowdown after earlier periods of stronger uptake.
The combined impact is substantial: Cairns's solar community avoids an estimated 18,173 tonnes of CO₂ every year — equivalent to taking 8,654 cars off the road or powering around 3,635 average Australian homes with clean electricity. This is estimated using Queensland's average grid emissions intensity of 810 gCO₂/kWh, sourced from OpenElectricity, applied to an average system size of 9kW.