1 September More REneweconomy news
RenewEconomy-
Turnbull’s new energy target: Drop the “clean” and ignore climateCoalition reportedly drops links to emission trajectories in draft proposal for a Clean Energy Target. It comes as Turnbull changes tone again on new coal, and the Queensland LNP releases a renewables policy derided immediately as a “farce”.
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How consumers got burned on electricity prices: It started with networksPolicy responses to high electricity prices should pay more attention to how consumers can be helped to use less electricity
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Inspiring green homes open their doors on Sustainable House DayAustralia’s most innovative green homes will be open to the public on Sustainable House Day, taking place on Sunday 17 September.
Australian media mindlessly regurgitates nuclear lobby spin about medical wastes
Misconceptions about radioactive medical isotopes, http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=19251 , By Noel Wauchope -29 August 2017
Australians get their information about medical isotopes straight from The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation(ANSTO) via handouts faithfully retailed via the mainstream media. Some recent examples of media coverage:
- from the ABC, 19/08/17 ‘Nuclear medicine production in Australia at risk if dump site can’t be found, industry head says‘ and Australians get their information about medical isotopes straight from The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation(ANSTO) via handouts faithfully retailed via the mainstream media. Some recent examples of media coverage:
- Eyre Peninsula Tribune 02/08/17 ‘Kimba landowners visit Lucas Heights nuclear facility’.
The message is straightforward and goes like this:
The purpose of the Opal nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights is to make medical radioisotopes to treat cancer. Australia needs a national radioactive waste dump in rural South Australia, thousands of miles away from Lucas Heights, to dispose of the low-level medical radioactive wastes produced. And this will be a bonanza for the lucky rural community of Kimba.
Is this story true?
No. It is misleading on a number of counts.
First of all, a nuclear reactor is not essential for making medical isotopes. The IAEA lists 39 countries that use cyclotrons to produce them. That includes Australia, which has them not only at Lucas Heights itself, but also at hospitals in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia.
From the invention of the cyclotron (1931) , and discovery of artificial radioactivity (1934), non nuclear particle accelerators were used to produce them. Globally, particle accelerators produced the vast majority of radioisotopes with medical applications until the 1950s. Radioisotopes of medical interest began to be produced as a byproduct of nuclear weapons reactors during World War II. After the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, the USA Atomic Energy Commission (AEC)’s main mission was promoting the military use of nuclear material, but “giving atomic energy a peaceful, civilian image” was also part of it. In1948 the AEC took over, and isotopes for biomedical research, cancer diagnostics and therapy were made in nuclear reactors and even became free of charge.
Australia was a bit slow to jump on the medical isotopes bandwagon. The Lucas Heights nuclear reactor began its life in 1958 as the start of a plan for nuclear weapons for Australia.Then it was promoted as research for nuclear power, and later as for making medical radiopharmaceuticals. Lucas Heights and ANSTO itself are very much part of the nuclear lobby’s plan to promote the entire nuclear industry in Australia.
Australia does not need a national radioactive waste dump for medical wastes. Nearly all medical radioactive wastes are very short-lived – a matter of days, or even hours. There is no need to transport them across the continent. Australia does have a problem with higher level wastes: Spent reactor fuel sent to France, USA and UK for processing must be returned. This is the type of waste that needs deep and very secure disposal. That is sure to be the underlying purpose of the South Australian waste dump plan.
The planned national radioactive waste dump will not benefit the local community. Yes, there will be bribes – so far, not much – a $2 million Community Benefit Package to fund local projects, but I’m sure that the Feds will come with better than that. Jobs, no doubt. However, the underlying problem remains. The community is being asked to accept a temporary nuclear waste dump, which is to be set up long before any permanent dump is set up, if it ever is. Kimba, the proposed dump site, is likely to suffer the fate of so many sad sites in America –stuck with “stranded wastes” of radioactive trash. Think what that would do to Kimba’s environment and reputation as an agricultural area.The nuclear lobby has argued persuasively that the Lucas Heights area has held nuclear wastes for decades. However, the Lucas Heights residents did not grasp the implications when the nuclear reactor was set up. They do now – that’s why they want the wastes sent far away.
The global nuclear lobby is fighting a losing battle. The industry has always struggled to win over public opinion. In Australia, the industry’s “foot in the door” is the Opal reactor at Lucas Heights. Following the South Australian Nuclear Fuel Cycle Royal Commission’s failed attempt last year, to introduce radioactive waste importing, the next sortie is to use Lucas Heights to get a national nuclear waste dump happening. To justify this, the argument put forward is the medical argument.
In the slick salesmanship from ANSTO and the nuclear lobby in general, they don’t mind a few lies and half truths,. For example, they’ll say ” The most important isotope technetium-99m can be made only with nuclear reactors” – conveniently forgetting that Canadian researchers achieved this with a cyclotron in 2015.
They’ll say that cyclotrons are too expensive to set up, conveniently forgetting that the Lucas Heights 
nuclear reactor was set up at tax-payer expense, and that tax-payer will have to fund its waste management virtually for eternity.
They’ll ignore the facts that cyclotrons produce negligible wastes. As most medical radioisotopes have very short half lives – it makes sense to produce them in a decentralised way – in cyclotrons close to the hospitals where they will be used. The transport of isotopes from cyclotrons is much less of a problem, than from the centralised nuclear reactor.
The nuclear reactor produces radioactive wastes suitable for use as nuclear weapons fuel – and present a safety problem, with the reactor itself also a target for terrorism. Cyclotrons do not have these risks, and this need for huge, and expensive security measures.
Canada, having abandoned nuclear reactor production of medical isotopes, is now leading the way in their production and export without use of a nuclear reactor. ANSTO’s boast of a future thriving export industry in isotopes is sounding hollow.
We should bear in mind that medical radioisotopes are used 80% for diagnosis, and only 20% for actual treatment of cancer. They are an additional means of diagnosis, but not the only means.
We should also be mindful that radioactive isotopes in medicine carry a small increased risk of cancer for the patient, staff, and sometimes the patient’s family.
Therefore our enthusiasm for nuclear medicine should be tempered with an understanding of its limitations and risks, both at the individual patient level, and in the broader context of nuclear fission and its health and environmental dangers.
Deep divisions caused in rural community of Kimba, over Federal govt’s radioactive trash dump plan.
Community torn over Kimba nuclear plan, Eureka Street Michele Madigan | 28 August 2017 The Unlucky Australians, the documentary of the Gurindjis’ campaign for their land, aired on the ABC late on Sunday night 20 August 2017. The Gurindjis’ successful struggle against the combined might of the Vestey empire and the Australian federal government is one of the greatest Australian stories……
Half a century after the Gurindji Walkoff and half a continent away, on Saturday 19 August at a gathering in Port Adelaide, two modern beleaguered groups, one Aboriginal, one non-Aboriginal, shared their current experiences in striving to protect their own lands and ways of life. Like the Gurindji, their struggle is with the federal government and this time, indirectly, with another big business — the nuclear industry. In contrast to the Gurindji struggle however, modern day communities and even families are being torn apart by enticements and pressures.
Two months ago, South Australia’s Premier Jay Weatherill conceded that there is ‘no bipartisan government support’ and ‘not sufficient community support’ to continue with the extraordinary scheme that a SA government sponsored nuclear royal commission had recommended. The Premier gave a commitment that a State Labor government, if re-elected, would now not pursue a high-level international nuclear waste dump.
The federal government however continues its pursuit in SA — the disposable state — of a federal dump for the intermediate long-term nuclear waste from the Lucas Heights nuclear reactor and for medical waste. Now, once again, three sites are being offered up: two in Kimba, at the top of Eyre Peninsula in South Australia, as well as the ongoing Flinders Ranges site.
At the 19 August meeting, Kimba farmers spoke of the offers of a paltry $10 million and a tiny 15 (or fewer) permanent jobs as the payoff for the deep divisions and the certain risk to their markets a federal dumpsite would bring. Farmer Toni Scott, overcome by describing a formerly close-knit community now torn apart, broke down in tears. The close voting statistics for and against the site belie the former Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, Matt Canavan’s assertion that Kimba is clearly in favour.
Farmer Tom Harris’s neighbour is one of two Kimba farmers who have offered possible dumpsites. However the site is closer to Tom’s family homestead than it is to the neighbour’s. It was sobering to hear his facts. Kimba region farmers ‘are recognised as some of the best dry farmers in the world’ but the competition between grain farmers for international markets is so intense that the warning from the professionals is clear: proximity to a nuclear waste dump will have predictably disastrous negative effects. And the irony — ‘It’s the farmers who’ve kept the town going.’
Meanwhile, the Adnymathanha and other Flinders Ranges station and townspeople continue their efforts to protect SA’s iconic Flinders Ranges from the same fate. During the 31 months it has been a preferred site, their trauma has deepened as they have seen other locals acquiesce. Sadly, with the government’s ‘no-strings-attached’ $2 million for community projects, the tearing apart of families has intensified.
The Gurindji had Frank Hardy and Australian unions supporting them during their terrible privations. Many Kimba farmers and townspeople, and the Adnyamathanha, together with some of the townspeople and most of the Flinders Ranges landholders, are grateful for their own southern (or eastern) supporters. They plead for more: ‘Please help us to be heard!’ https://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=52964#.WaXSuvMjHGh
The Finkel clean eneergy target will not meet Australia’s goals in Paris climate agreement
Finkel clean energy target too weak for Paris climate goal, 
analysis shows Target will transfer pressure to other sectors of the economy to reduce their emissions, research shows, Research commissioned by the Australian Conservation Foundation on the clean energy target says the trajectory of emissions reduction is not strong enough. Guardian, Katharine Murphy, 29 Aug 17
The clean energy target recommended by Australia’s chief scientist, Alan Finkel, won’t deliver Australia’s obligations under the Paris agreement and will only transfer pressure to other sectors of the economy to reduce their emissions, according to new analysis.
The new research comes as the Coalition’s difficult internal deliberations over the Finkel review are set to resume, with a report due from the Australian Energy Market Operator about the dispatchable power requirements of the electricity grid after the closure of two ageing coal-fired power stations.
And it comes as the prime minister will on Wednesday hold a second meeting with Australia’s major energy retailers in an attempt to make it easier for consumers to switch their power provider – a response to acute political pressure over rising electricity bills.
Discussions between the government and the companies in the lead up to Wednesday’s talks have centred on whether energy companies can offer monthly billing to try and prevent bill shock, and whether more can be done to communicate with hardship customers to ensure they aren’t locked in to inflated power contracts.
The new research on the clean energy target has been commissioned by the Australian Conservation Foundation.
The modelling says the Finkel trajectory would see Australia’s electricity emissions being phased out between 2095-2101 – a timeframe that is inconsistent with the Paris goal of limiting warming to two degrees, and of reaching carbon neutrality by mid-century.
It also points out that if the electricity sector does comparatively less of the heavy lifting on emissions reductions, the burden will fall more heavily on other sectors, with the largest reductions then falling on high emissions growth sectors, rather than the sectors with the largest share of total national emissions……..https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/aug/30/finkel-clean-energy-target-too-weak-for-paris-climate-goal-analysis-shows
Australian govt -‘no plans’ to build or fund coal power, says PM Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Turnbull says Government has ‘no plans’ to build or fund coal power, ABC 28 Aug 17 By political reporter Henry Belot ,
Key points:
- The Coalition has accepted 49 of the 50 recommendations from the Finkel Report
- Barnaby Joyce, Tony Abbott among MPs wanting the CET to allow more coal power plants
- PM Malcolm Turnbull says his Government has funded green energy “to a large degree”
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says his Government has no plans to build a new coal-fired power station, and he wants to resolve a fractious debate over a clean energy target (CET) by the end of the year.
17 August More REneweconomy News
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Turnbull doesn’t need new baseload, he just needs some ballsNo-one wants to invest in new baseload power. It makes no economic, or environmental sense. Deep down, Malcolm Turnbull understands this, but does he have the courage of his convictions, if that is what they were, to overcome the nonsense from the conservative ideologues?
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WA could be solar exporter, but it needs a solar industry firstReport says WA’s Pilbara must first establish local solar industry if it wants to offer Indonesia competitive rates on PV generation.
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AGL hits pause on virtual power plant in technology “rethink”AGL tells its “virtual power plant” customers in Adelaide their installation will be delayed while it reviews technology choices for the program.
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New demand management plan could match “half a Hazelwood”AER’s proposed demand management scheme could deliver flexible capacity equivalent to half the closed Hazelwood coal-plant.
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Hundreds register interest in Qld renewables + storage auctionQueensland’s 400MW reverse auction for renewables and energy storage has been flooded with interest.
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Wind and solar produce three times more energy than IEA admitsThe IEA energy statistics underestimates the role of wind and solar in the world’s energy mix – by a factor of three. Here’s why.
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Vector to boost its smart energy solutionsVector will be expanding its energy storage options for residential, industrial, and commercial customers, starting with LG Chem’s battery storage products.
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Delta Electricity engages Entura to support Vales Point solar farmSpecialist power and water consulting firm Entura has been appointed by Delta Electricity to provide engineering services to support the development of the proposed Vales Point power station solar farm.
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Battery storage: Who’s leading on quality and brand recognition?Tesla and LG Chem are leading the battery storage market in terms of brand recognition, but the issue of quality throws up some other names.
REneweconomy news 30 August
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Renewables delivering – despite enemies and “lukewarm defenders”Green Energy Markets Renewable Energy Index shows an industry delivering on its promise: fulfilling a large and growing part of Australia’s energy needs while also providing meaningful employment.
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Sapphire Wind Farm seeks community investors in possible Australian firstSapphire Wind Farm developer calls on community investors to take shares in what will be NSW biggest wind farm.
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Snowy Hydro 2.0 Powering AheadSnowy Hydro 2.0 is already employing 350 people and will create more than 5000 new jobs during the construction phase of the development.
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Know your NEM: Canberra fiddling while Rome burns on energy pricesFederal Government turns attention back to electricity prices, but while their interest is welcome, it is in a sense just fiddling while Rome burns.
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WA mulls three gigawatt-scale PV plants to export solar to AsiaPlans to build three gigawatt-scale solar farms in Western Australia’s Pilbara and Kimberley regions and sell their output to Indonesia via submarine cables, could soon be commercially viable.
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Victoria proposes “hybrid” contracts for new wind and solar farmsVictoria “hybrid” contract for its 650MW large scale renewable energy action, combining fixed payment with “contract for difference” that will cap its exposure.
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NSW on renewables: All talk, not much actionNSW talks a good talk on renewable energy but offers few actions. Its share of new renewables is far smaller than its share of electricity consumption and this is particularly marked in PV, yet Transgrid sees huge opportunities.
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S.A. calls tender for “next generation” renewables and storageSouth Australia seeks bids for “next generation” of renewable energy technologies, including “firming” capacity for wind and solar projects, bulk energy storage, and bio-energy.
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Shell wins approval for 250MW solar plant in Queensland coal countryShell wins planning approval for 250MW solar plant in heart of Queensland’s coal country, in what appears to be its first big move into large scale solar in Australia.
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WA bathes in sunshine, but poorest households lack solar panelsSolar panels are still a rarity in WA’s lower-income areas.
Radioactive wastes: South Australia
Royal Adelaide Hospital waste to be shipped back overseas when it closes http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/royal-adelaide-hospital-waste-to-be-shipped-back-overseas-when-it-closes/news-story/a3cdebd7c500f00e67b7913b48e7d900?nk=ba26857f63080120cbd5fc74c94d3959-1503908527, Daniel Wills, State Political Editor, August 27, 2017
RADIOACTIVE waste currently stored at the old Royal Adelaide Hospital is set to be sent back overseas as the site is cleared when health services shift to the other end of North Tce.
With demolition and redevelopment of the site imminent once medical services are transferred to the new hospital next week, The Advertiser can reveal the State Government is developing plans to return the waste back to it European or British origin.
More than a year ago, Renewal SA chief executive John Hanlon told a State Parliament committee how the Government was working on plans to house the waste in SA when the old RAH closed. While no proposal was settled, officials investigated a new SA site that could also be a repository for other low-level radioactive waste scattered in other sites around the state.
A SA Health spokeswoman said the old RAH waste, mostly used for patient treatment and research, was no longer needed once the shift to the new hospital was complete.
“The radioactive sources are currently stored in lead-lined boxes in a secure store in preparation for the removal process,” she said. “Once the old RAH site is decommissioned, the majority of waste radioactive sources will be safely returned to the country of origin.”
Most of the radioactive sources at the old RAH used for medical purposes came from the UK or Europe. SA Health is also working to identify any other origin countries. Final disposal is expected to be dealt with by the source material’s manufacturers.
The department is working with the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation and the state Environment Protection Authority to ensure safe, and legal removal. The old RAH is one of 78 different facilities in SA currently storing low or intermediate level waste, according to the government’s Nuclear Fuel Cycle Royal Commission.
Low level waste is generated in hospitals and by industry. It comprises paper, rags, tools, and gloves with short-lived radioactivity that do not require shielding during normal handling.
Intermediate waste is typically metal and other materials from decommissioned reactors. It emits higher levels of radiation and requires shielding during handling, transport and storage.
Parliament was told in 2011 that radioactive waste currently at the old RAH is in a basement.SA Health is responsible for the removal of all known radioactive sources before the site is handed over to Renewal SA, which will oversee a $1 billion redevelopment.
A truly good news story – the cuttlefish are back in Spencer Gulf
South Australians – pat yourselves on the back. When the nuclear lobby wanted to put the nuclear industry up at the top of Spencer Gulf – South Australia said “NO” – as South Australians have been doing for decades – fighting back. Nuclear power would have caused releases of hot water into the Gulf, ruining the special temperature conditions essential for the breeding of these unique and beautiful animals.
We don’t really know why they dwindled, and why they’re now back. But hooray for their return!
Thousands of giant cuttlefish back in SA http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/thousands-of-giant-cuttlefish-back-in-sa/news-story/f859a1f7bd568fb213ae2fe4fe66b680, Australian Associated Press, August 25, 2017 Thousands of giant cuttlefish are flocking to the rocky coastline of the upper Spencer Gulf in South Australia to spawn in record numbers, reserving a worrying decline.
More than 100,000 cuttlefish have journeyed to Point Lowly near Whyalla to breed, according to data from the state government’s principal research institute.
The number is up from a record low of just over 13,000 in 2013.
The giant Australian cuttlefish – which can reach up to 60cm in length and weigh five kilograms – live for two to three years and migrate annually to Spencer Gulf to spawn.
The worrying decline in their numbers in 2013 promoted more research into their breeding patterns. This year’s population estimate is the third-highest recorded over the last decade,” said senior research scientist Dr Mike Steer.
It is still not completely understood why cuttlefish migrate to the Spencer Gulf nor why their numbers declined, but fishing restrictions have been put in place until 2018 as a precaution.
“The last five years of research has clearly demonstrated the population’s capacity to rebound from low numbers very quickly,” Dr Steer said.
Without Clean Energy Target, Australia’s booming renewable energy will flounder: Frydenberg prevaricates
Renewable energy booming but could soon turn to bust, analysts warn, The Age, Nicole Hasham , 27 Aug 17
Australia produced enough renewable energy to power 70 per cent of households last financial year, new data shows, but advocates warn the booming industry will flounder unless the Turnbull government commits to a clean energy target.
The government is sharply divided over whether to adopt the target, the central recommendation of Chief Scientist Alan Finkel’s review of the national electricity market…….
Mr Frydenberg cited Clean Energy Council figures showing there was a record $8 billion of renewable investment underway, delivering more than 4000MW of new renewable generation capacity.
He has previously said the clean energy target, if implemented, would not come into effect until 2020 so there was “no rush” for the government to make a decision……http://www.theage.com.au/environment/energy-smart/renewable-energy-booming-but-could-soon-turn-to-bust-analysts-warn-20170825-gy4egf
Enough renewable energy to power 70% of Australian homes
Renewable energy generates enough power to run 70% of Australian homes https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/aug/27/renewable-energy-generates-enough-power-to-run-70-of-australian-homes
Renewable Energy Index shows sector will generate power to run 90% of homes once wind and solar projects being built in 2016-17 are completed, Guardian, Joshua Robertson, 28 Aug 17, Australia’s renewable energy sector is within striking distance of matching national household power consumption, cranking out enough electricity to run 70% of homes last financial year, new figures show.
The first Australian Renewable Energy Index, produced by Green Energy Markets, finds the sector will generate enough power to run 90% of homes once wind and solar projects under construction in 2016-17 are completed. The index, funded by GetUp through supporter donations, underlines the advance of renewables, despite Australia’s electricity markets still leaning heavily on carbon-emitting coal and gas-fired generation.
Renewables, which made up just 7% of national electricity output a decade ago, accounted for 17.2% last financial year. This jumped to 18.8% last month. This is saving the power sector from carbon pollution equivalent to taking more than half of all cars in Australia off the road, according to Green Energy Markets.
Green Energy Markets analyst Tristan Edis said the emergence of renewables, in particular wind and solar, as a “significant source of power” had ushered in a “construction jobs and investment boom”.
“The renewable energy sector has staged a remarkable recovery, after investment completely dried-up under former prime minister Tony Abbott,” Edis said.
He said investors had “recovered their confidence under Malcolm Turnbull”, with help also from “a range of state government initiatives”. Edis said the renewables sector was on track to meet the federal government’s renewable energy target of 20% of total generation by 2020 over a year early, by the end of 2018.
However, the renewable jobs boom underpinned by the RET could “soon turn to bust”, he said.
Renewable investment beyond the RET risked collapsing without the Turnbull government moving forward on chief scientist Alan Finkel’s recommendation for a future “clean energy target”, he said.
At least 46 large-scale energy projects under construction by the end of June were providing enough work to employ 8,868 people full-time for a year. This figure had surged to 10,000 by July. Most jobs were in NSW (3,018), thanks largely to wind farms, while Queensland (2,625) was next, with 70% of its jobs coming from solar farms.
Rooftop solar installations supported a further 3,769 full-time jobs across Australia in 2016-17.
With most projects underway in Queensland, large solar farms still generated less than 2% of renewable energy in 2016-17, the index found.
Generation from rooftop solar, which was “back in 2008 little more than a rounding error”, had “grown spectacularly”, Edis said.
More than 150,000 systems installed in the last year alone would produce enough energy for 226,000 homes, he said.
“Meanwhile these solar systems will also save consumers $1.5 billion off their electricity bills over the next 10 years.”
Miriam Lyons, GetUp’s energy campaigns director, said that “everyday Australians are voting with their rooftops” in a move that “heralds the end of the era of big polluting energy companies dominating the market and manipulating prices to fill their own pockets”.
“Who do we have to thank for the renewables boom? Certainly not the federal government,” she said.
“Instead we can thank the thousands of everyday Australians who stood up and defended the national [RET] from Tony Abbott’s attacks, who saved [the Australian Renewable Energy Agency] from federal government budget cuts, and who pushed their state governments into showing some leadership on clean energy.”
The Australian Renewable Energy Index will be published monthly.
Voices of reason call for immediate end to NT Indigenous Intervention
~ Jeff McMullen https://independentaustralia.net/australia/australia-display/voices-of-reason-call-for-immediate-end-to-indigenous-intervention,10655
” … Several outspoken Elders, including Utopia’s Rosalie Kunoth-Monks and speakers from the Yolgnu Nations Assembly will launch the statement of support in Melbourne.
“They say the slow strangulation of services to the smaller homelands and the suffocating government control of almost all aspects of community life is a creeping extinction for these Aboriginal people. …
“The group statement concludes:
“We call on the Australian Government to heed the call of Northern Territory Elders for an immediate end to the racism and discrimination of the Intervention policies which are an ongoing stain on the Australian nation.
“It is time that the Australian Governments respect and negotiate with remote living Indigenous people in good faith, demonstrate proper duty of care to them and allow all First Nations of Australia the right to self-determination.”
Malcolm Turnbull tries to look climate change good, with Snowy Hydro funding
Malcolm Turnbull to announce millions in funding for Snowy Hydro 2.0 pet project, The Age, James Massol, 27 Aug 17 Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is set to announce millions in extra funding for his pet project, Snowy Hydro 2.0, after visiting the power station on Monday morning. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is set to announce millions in extra funding for his pet project, Snowy Hydro 2.0, after visiting the power station on Monday morning.
The announcement is due to be made in News Corp papers on Monday, but Fairfax Media has learnt the details ahead of time.
Mr Turnbull will attempt to focus on electricity prices and energy policy for the entire week ahead, in an attempt to shift focus away from the citizenship fiasco….
The feasibility study is due to be completed by the end of year; work is already under way on technical and drilling work and it will soon ramp up to be a 24-hour-a-day operation……
The expansion of Snowy Hydro, which will conservatively cost at least $2 billion and which will take at least four years to complete, is designed to provide power for an extra 500,000 homes when finished. The bill for the project could effectively double from $2 billion to $4 billion because of essential upgrades to power transmission lines into Melbourne and Sydney.
When completed, it will effectively function as a giant battery for the east coast electricity market and the new power station will have an estimated generation capacity of 2000 megawatts…..
ARENA began talks with Snowy Hydro about working on the project in February, about a month before the Prime Minister announced the project, and it is hoped the know-how the agency gains from working on Snowy Hydro 2.0 will be used on other pumped hydro storage projects.
The Commonwealth owns 13 per cent of the scheme, NSW 58 per cent and the Victorian government 29 per cent. http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/malcolm-turnbull-to-announce-millions-in-funding-for-snowy-hydro-20-pet-project-20170827-gy5042.html
Australia eclipsed in commercial solar uptake
http://www.examiner.com.au/story/4876719/australia-eclipsed-in-commercial-solar-uptake/?cs=97 Reece Turner, 27 Aug 2017, Australia is seeing a new boom in solar energy generation powered by nose-bleeding electricity and gas price rises. In fact, Australian households are approaching 25 per cent solar uptake, which is the highest in the world by a large margin.
In Illawarra, there are 11,259 households powered by the sun and, according to advocacy group Solar Citizens, this saves residents $5.4 million every year. This is great for job creation and the environment.
However, when it comes to businesses installing solar power, Australia’s doing far worse. Estimates are we’re not even in the top 20 countries for commercial solar.
Community energy group Repower and solar engineering company Planet Ark Power hope to change that by helping more companies in Illawarra to take up solar.
This month, at the Wollongong Tennis Club, we’ll be launching “Repower Wollongong”. This follows successful launches of Repower Shoalhaven and Repower Southern Highlands. Indeed, this model of community energy group is one of the most successful in the country, assisting 17 businesses save thousands on their bills.
Many businesses are interested in going solar, but there are some hurdles. One of them can be the upfront costs. A commercial solar system generates free energy for 25 or 30 years, but the initial investment can be anything from $20,000 upwards.
The Repower community energy model removes this hurdle by collecting community investment that pays for the system upfront and then sells the clean energy back to the business at a rate cheaper than grid electricity and with a degree of certainty against rising energy hikes.
It’s a brilliant model delivering returns to the community, helping save on business costs and supporting local jobs. Find out more at www.repower.net.au
Reece Turner is business development manager at Planet Ark Power.
28 August REneweconomy news
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Renewables delivering – despite enemies and “lukewarm defenders”Green Energy Markets Renewable Energy Index shows an industry delivering on its promise: fulfilling a large and growing part of Australia’s energy needs while also providing meaningful employment.
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Sapphire Wind Farm seeks community investors in possible Australian firstSapphire Wind Farm developer calls on community investors to take shares in what will be NSW biggest wind farm.
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Snowy Hydro 2.0 Powering AheadSnowy Hydro 2.0 is already employing 350 people and will create more than 5000 new jobs during the construction phase of the development.
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Know your NEM: Canberra fiddling while Rome burns on energy pricesFederal Government turns attention back to electricity prices, but while their interest is welcome, it is in a sense just fiddling while Rome burns.
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WA mulls three gigawatt-scale PV plants to export solar to AsiaPlans to build three gigawatt-scale solar farms in Western Australia’s Pilbara and Kimberley regions and sell their output to Indonesia via submarine cables, could soon be commercially viable.
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Victoria proposes “hybrid” contracts for new wind and solar farmsVictoria “hybrid” contract for its 650MW large scale renewable energy action, combining fixed payment with “contract for difference” that will cap its exposure.
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NSW on renewables: All talk, not much actionNSW talks a good talk on renewable energy but offers few actions. Its share of new renewables is far smaller than its share of electricity consumption and this is particularly marked in PV, yet Transgrid sees huge opportunities.
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S.A. calls tender for “next generation” renewables and storageSouth Australia seeks bids for “next generation” of renewable energy technologies, including “firming” capacity for wind and solar projects, bulk energy storage, and bio-energy.
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Shell wins approval for 250MW solar plant in Queensland coal countryShell wins planning approval for 250MW solar plant in heart of Queensland’s coal country, in what appears to be its first big move into large scale solar in Australia.
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WA bathes in sunshine, but poorest households lack solar panelsSolar panels are still a rarity in WA’s lower-income areas.
1 This month
PETITION – To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Government
Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes – A good documentary on Chernobyl on SBS available On Demand for the next 3 weeks– https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-program/chernobyl-the-lost-tapes/235274195556
19 May – Webinar- Webinar: No Nuclear Weapons in Australia
Start: 2026-05-19 18:00:00 UTC Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney (GMT+10:00)
End: 2026-05-19 19:30:00 UTC Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney (GMT+10:00)
20 May – Webinar – The dangerous world of AUKUS, US, military occupation and suppression of dissent
National Webinar, 20th May, 2026, 6.30pm AEST. Confronting laws restricting/suppressing protest speech and action
Speakers: Former Sen. Rex Patrick, Lawyer Nick Hanna ,Arthur Rorris ,Jorgen Doyle, Sen David Shoebbridge,
Facilitator Kelley Tranter.
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity
Antinuclear 