Australian Energy Market Operator Chief abused by broadcaster Alan Jones, of the loony Right
Broadcaster Alan Jones launches ugly attack on AEMO’s Zibelman http://reneweconomy.com.au/broadcaster-alan-jones-launches-ugly-attack-on-aemos-zibelman-66561/, By Giles Parkinson on 14 July 2017
Prominent radio Broadcaster Alan Jones has launched an extraordinary and unhinged attack on Audrey Zibelman, the new head of the Australian Energy Market Operator, saying “that woman” should be “run out of town.”
In a reprise of Jones’ nasty attacks on former prime minister Julia Gillard over the carbon tax, and on the same day that the head of the Coalition’s energy policy committee Craig Kelly said “people will die” from renewable energy, Jones described Zibelman as “ideologically constipated” and “full of rubbish.”
“The woman is a global warming advocate and a promoter of wind turbines,” Jones said, while repeatedly confusing the name of the organisation she runs. “That woman, watch out for her, she should be run out of town”.
Zibelman was appointed early this year and has impressed nearly everyone in the industry with her drive, clarity and understanding of the issues in how to navigate the path through the energy transition.
Her crime? Her apparent support for renewable energy – which she accepts is the cheapest form of new generation, and her push for smart, demand side responses which she says is cleaner and cheaper than building new fossil fuel plants.
Jones was also apoplectic about Zibelman’s acceptance of climate science – which he rejects – and her comments that the Hazelwood closure would not put Australia’s energy security at risk. Jones described her as a “global warming hoax alarmist.”
Zibelman led the New York state’s ground-breaking “reform the energy vision” program which looked at using localised, renewable energy and micro-grids to boost energy security after Hurricane Sandy destroyed the centralised energy infrastructure and left millions without power for weeks.
Jones’ bombast is well known. But it is of great concern that the conservative attacks on all things clean energy – solar, wind, battery storage, carbon pricing and vehicle emissions – have now turned personal and ugly as the campaign by the fossil fuel lobby and their apologists turns even more toxic.
Conservative commentators, almost all as one, turned their barbs on chief scientist Alan Finkel even before the release of his report, for failing to toe the fossil fuel line.
They have continued relentlessly since the release and when it appeared it may be possible that the Coalition might consider his recommended clean energy target, and as Finkel and numerous others made the point that renewables are clearly cheaper than new coal or gas plants.
Interestingly, Jones wasn’t the only one to attack Zibelman, with Alan Moran, the former Institute of Public Affairs regulatory boss, accusing her of “being a refugee” from Hillary Clinton’s failed presidential bid.
Jones also led a conservative attack against Tesla found and CEO Elon Musk this week after the announcement of the 100MW/129MW battery storage installation in South Australia, apparently on the belief that it was designed to power the whole state, not just make up any potential shortfalls and boost grid security.
“Elon Musk won’t be able to produce a thirtieth of the energy demand of South Australia,” Jones said, echoing comments made by federal energy minister Josh Frydenberg, adding that Musk should also be “sent home” and not paid any money.
Jones was the instigator of a series of extraordinary attacks on former PM Gillard at the height of the carbon tax debate, appearing in Canberra, along with Tony Abbott, amid signs of “ditch the witch” and calling for her to be put “into a chaff bag” and hoisted into the sea.
Jones also led the “wind fraud” rally in Canberra in 2013 which barely attracted 100 people, and forced to admit he “got it wrong” after making ludicrous claims about the cost of renewable energy on the ABC’s Q&A program in 2015.
In 2012, in a humiliating episode, Jones and his Sydney radio station 2GB agreed with the country’s radio broadcasting watchdog to undergo training in fact-checking after complaints about a statement Jones had made about climate change.
Clearly, the training did not work.
Queensland government would welcome an Elon Musk renewable energy storage project
Queensland’s door would be open to Elon Musk: Trad, The Age, Felicity Caldwell, 13 July 17, Queensland’s door would be open to billionaire Elon Musk if he wanted to talk about a project in the Sunshine State, Deputy Premier Jackie Trad said following a leaders’ roundtable featuring former US vice president and climate change activist Al Gore.
Last week, South Australia announced Mr Musk’s Tesla company as the principal builder of the world’s largest lithium ion battery to expand the state’s renewable energy supply.
Mr Musk has promised to have the SA system installed and operating within 100 days, otherwise it will be free.
Ms Trad said Queensland would say yes to Mr Musk if he wanted to turn his attention to the state once the South Australian battery was built. “The door would be absolutely open,” she said.
Would she hope Mr Musk might come knocking and set up a facility in Townsville?
“I think that would be incredibly exciting for Townsville and for Queensland as a whole,” she said.
On July 11, the Queensland government announced its plan for zero net emissions by 2050 and reducing emissions by 30 per cent on 2005 levels by 2030. Ms Trad spoke to Fairfax Media from Melbourne, where Queensland, Victoria, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory have signed a “leadership declaration” at a roundtable attended by Mr Gore, who narrowly lost the 2000 US presidential election……
Australia’s states and ACT have agreed to work together to meet obligations under the Paris Agreement, a zero net carbon emissions by 2050 policy and to share information on their successes.
“We want to share innovation, understanding and learning in this space so that as a nation we can move towards what we committed to do and that is to do our bit, to reduce our emissions and keep global temperatures below an increase of 2 degrees,” Ms Trad said.
“We know that this [the Paris Agreement] is a big challenge, we know this is something that Australia signed up for.
“But what we also know is that the Turnbull government has failed to show the necessary leadership for us to move in that direction.”……http://www.theage.com.au/queensland/queenslands-door-would-be-open-to-elon-musk-trad-20170713-gxaty0.html
14 July – more latest REneweconomy news
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Redflow seeking $14.5m, shifts focus on lead-acid marketRedflow taps shareholders to back new focus on market “sweet-spot” including south-east Asia’s off-grid, telecom, commercial and industrial sectors.
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What people just don’t get about electric vehiclesGermany’s election campaign shows we still have to get our heads around how fundamentally different electric vehicles will be.
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How did Australia get this stupid about clean energy?Australia’s public debate around clean energy plumbs new depths, with rebooted attacks on wind and solar, new attacks on battery storage and vehicle emission standards, and targeted attacks on key individuals. How did Australia get this stupid? And this ugly?
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True Value Solar announces new managing directorOne of Australia’s largest independent residential solar installers announces the appointment of former Conergy executive David McCallum as managing director.
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CEFC tips $150m into logistics park, to slash truck freight emissionsCEFC backs landmark NSW project to slash freight transport emissions by shifting containers from road to rail, and powering operations with renewable energy.
100%. Transitioning to renewable energy: The South Australian case
The power of renewables and the South Australian example, Independent Australia 12 July 2017 While the Turnbull Government persists in spruiking “clean coal”, renewables continue to be the quiet achievers in energy generation. Jade Manson reports.
THE FUTURE of Australia’s energy generation has been a topic of impassioned debate in recent years.
This has been spurred on by sharp reductions in the installation price of renewable energy.
Solar and wind energy have now in many cases reached parity with installation prices for coal, and gas and is cheaper in the long-term. In December 2016, the World Economic Forum reported that solar and wind had the same installation price as fossil fuel companies in more than 30 countries. In 2016, clean energy investment grew by almost 50% in Australia. We have reached a tipping point, where investment in renewable energy will continue to rise, while investment in fossil fuels will fall.
Lazard’s energy analysis shows that the levellised cost of energy for wind and solar now outperforms fossil fuel sources of power. Levellised cost represents every cost component – installation, operations and maintenance and fuel costs – divided by the total energy generated during the plant’s lifetime.
Discussions comparing renewable and fossil fuel electricity generation usually centre around the up-front costs and do not consider the generation costs, or the social and environmental consequences of different energy sources. Renewable energy has significantly lower generation costs and does not require continued fuel supply. With installation costs now being similar – and likely to decrease significantly over the next decade – renewable energy is a tremendously worthwhile investment that will break even rapidly and continue to provide returns indefinitely.
This economic competition is making fossil fuel companies nervous and contributing to the heated debate around the issue. Fossil fuel companies still hold a significant amount of power and influence after decades of being at the top of the economic food-chain. Companies such as China National Petroleum, Sinopec Group, Shell Global and ExxonMobil are all in the top ten largest businesses globally, with over $100 billion in annual revenue. These companies are using the wealth they have accumulated since the beginning of the industrial revolution to influence politics and the global market toward their own interests.
This can be seen clearly in the fact that, despite the economic, health and social benefits of renewable energy, those in Parliament continue to support fossil fuel companies……..
Increasing renewable energy investment will also create more jobs and will allow Australians to capitalise on the renewable energy investment boom. While the Coalition declares “coal is good for humanity“, solar jobs are rising and in 2016, made up 665 of open energy job postings. According to Solar Citizens, renewable jobs increased by 34% in the first quarter of 2016. Indeed, data showed that solar positions made up 66% of open energy job postings, against oil with a 21% share and coal with 10%.
Transitioning to renewable energy: The South Australian case
South Australia has sped past its renewable energy target of 50% renewable generation eight years in advance, putting it on track to reach 100% renewable generation by 2030. This should be achieved more easily than in the previous 15 years due to the falling cost of renewable energy.
A deal has recently been made between the South Australian Government and Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, to install the world’s largest battery in South Australia………
Electricity prices in South Australia are very high compared to the Eastern States. The Eastern States are part of a highly interconnected grid, while South Australia only connects to Victoria via two locations. Typically 90% of energy prices in South Australia come down to generation (45%) and distribution (45%). The generation component is made up of several power sources, including gas, diesel and renewable energy sources. These suppliers bid into the market, and the lowest bids are accepted by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) until demand is reached. When renewable energy is in the mix, the market price for generation is very low.
The distribution component is a duopoly run by the companies ElectraNet (owned by State Grid Corporation of China, YTL Corporation Malaysia and Hastings Funds Management) and SAPN (owned by Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings Hong Kong). This international ownership of South Australia’s electricity grid has raised security concerns, as these companies may not act in South Australia’s best interests. A bid by Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings to buy the NSW electricity grid was knocked back in 2016, on national security grounds.
Due to lack of competition, there is the potential for unnecessary price increases by the power distribution companies. As renewable energy becomes more prevalent, power distribution will make up a larger share of energy costs and these problems will need to be addressed. Renewable energy infrastructure should lead to reduced electricity prices, due to their significantly decreased running costs. If this is not the case, then it calls into question the pricing by the power suppliers and distribution companies. If pricing becomes disproportionate to the service provided, then the government may need to introduce increased regulation or buy back the grid from private distribution companies.
You can follow Jade Manson on Twitter @JadeAlanaM. https://independentaustralia.net/environment/environment-display/the-power-of-renewables-and-the-south-australian-example,10495
Is Federal Resources Minister Matt Canavan Australia’s stupidest Minister yet?
Stop trying to save the planet, Matthew Canavan tells Queensland government
Federal minister attracts ridicule after he says state should ‘concentrate on saving jobs today’ instead of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050, Guardian, Michael Slezak, 13 July 17,[article includes many tweets as examples] The federal resources minister, Matthew Canavan, has attracted a slew of criticism after attacking the Queensland government for trying to “save the planet in 2050”.
On Tuesday, Queensland announced it would aim to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050. The announcement was far from radical, with identical pledges already made by the Coalition-led New South Wales government, as well as Labor-led Victoria, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory.
But the move attracted the ire of Queensland-based Canavan, who tweeted: “Instead of trying to save the planet in 2050 the QLD labor should just concentrate on saving jobs today!”…….
it was unclear to many on Twitter why taking action on climate change and growing employment today would be seen as mutually exclusive aims.
Although Queensland’s announcement was unlikely to have much impact on Adani’s plans to build Australia’s biggest coalmine in the state, many people pointed out that coalmining produced relatively few jobs compared with those threatened by climate change.
Craig Kelly, the Liberal MP who chairs the Coalition’s backbench energy committee, was also criticised after he claimed renewable energy would lead to people dying of cold because it was pushing up energy prices.https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/jul/13/stop-trying-to-save-the-planet-matthew-canavan-tells-queensland-government
Torres Strait islanders affected by climate change – evacuation eventually needed
‘The island is being eaten’: how climate change is threatening the Torres Strait
In Boigu, part of Australia but just six kilometres from Papua New Guinea, roads are being washed into the sea, Guardian, Ben Doherty and Michael Slezak, 13 July 17, Torres Strait residents face being forced from their homes by climate change, as their islands are lost to rising seas.
On Boigu Island, the most northerly inhabited island in Australia, just six kilometres from Papua New Guinea, the community’s cemetery faces inundation and roads are being washed into the sea. A seawall installed to protect the community is already failing.
Boigu elder Dennis Gibuma says the situation is worsening every season.
“Our seawall is no longer any good,” he says. “When the high tide and strong winds come together, it breaks. We pray we don’t lose our homes. We don’t want to leave this place.”
Masig Island, to the south-east of Boigu, is less than three kilometres long, and just 800m across at its widest point. Also known as Yorke Island, the low-lying coral cay is steadily being lost to the waves.
“In the short term, we can do what we can. We can’t stop the erosion, our hope is to slow it down.”
But he says he has to face the possibility that his people may have to abandon their ancestral home.
“Long term, we may have to evacuate the island,” he says. “But I am not going. Slowly, I see Masig Island getting out of something I can control.”………
The precise sea level rise around the Torres Strait, and the projected inundation, has not been calculated but low-lying islands are expected to experience a much greater flooding risk than mainland Australia. The department identifies the remote islands of the Torres Strait as some of the most vulnerable, as does the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which warns communities they may be forced to relocate………
Displacement caused by climate change is forecast to be a driver of massive forced migration movements in the 21st century.
Low-lying islands in the Pacific – and Torres Strait islands like Masig and Boigu – are likely to be at the forefront of forced displacement but large and densely populated countries such as Bangladesh also face widespread inundation.
Some forecasts have predicted up to 150 million people could be forcibly displaced by climate change by 2040 – larger than the record number of people already forced from their homes globally.
The US and other militaries have said that climate change poses the greatest security threat to the Asia-Pacific.
But the global legal framework for resettling people displaced from their homes lost to natural disasters or climate change is unclear. The refugee convention – established in 1951 to regularise the resettlement of those displaced by the second world war – does not recognise someone forced from their home by rising seas, or natural disaster, as requiring protection.
Already, more than a dozen Pacific Islanders have attempted to claim refugee status in New Zealand on the grounds that their homes are uninhabitable because of rising seas or climate-related disaster. All have had their claims rejected.
On Masig Island, Hilda Mosby says climate change is already affecting the marine ecosystems on which communities depend for their livelihoods. Climate changeis already affecting her community “big time”, she says.
But the greater existential threat for her home lies ahead….https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/13/the-island-is-being-eaten-how-climate-change-is-threatening-the-torres-strait
14 July More REneweconomy news
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As Tesla prepares to deliver its potentially game-changing mass market EV, Australia goes into meltdown about the very idea of improving vehicle efficiency.
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Australia needs to cut electricity sector emissions by 60% by 2030Renewables must play key role in ramping up the abatement from the electricity sector in Australia.
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AEMO: Politics needs to catch up with falling cost of wind, solar, storageAEMO chief Audrey Zibelman says politics needs to deal with falling cost of wind, solar and batteries, and customer preference around rooftop solar.
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AES, Siemens combine to tackle Tesla, dominate battery storage marketTwo of biggest energy companies in the world join forces to dominate global battery storage market, at least at grid scale. Australia is high on their list of targets, with a series of projects that could dwarf Tesla’s newly announced project.
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Genex solar/storage project shortlisted for funds from NAIFSolar PV and pumped hydro project proposed for abandoned gold mine in north Queensland shortlisted for funding by Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility.
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Frydenberg says storage ratio for wind/solar to be decided by AEMOFederal energy minister says AEMO is best placed to assess what storage levels are needed to stabilise Australia’s grid.
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New Energy Security Taskforce prepares Queensland for summerSecuring Queensland’s future energy supply was the number one agenda item when the newly commissioned Queensland Energy Security Taskforce met for the first time today.
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Conservative billionaire building biggest wind farm in heart of coal countryA conservative billionaire is building the country’s largest wind farm. Republican lawmakers want to raise the tax on wind.
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Clean energy spending hits 43% share of total supply investmentGlobal spending on energy fall by 12% overall in 2016 but clean energy spending is on the up.
World’s unstoppable movement on climate change action – explained at Ecocity 2017 World Summit in Melbourne
Ecocity 2017 World Summit: Cities forge ahead on climate change action http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/ecocity-2017-world-summit-cities-forge-ahead-on-climate-change-action/news-story/586aeb5ddd424192ca4643f81aad3f6a IAN ROYALL, Herald Sun July 12, 2017 THE great cities of the world are forging ahead with action on climate change despite US President Donald Trump’s stance on the issue, a global conference in Melbourne has been told.
Latst news from REneweconomy
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Vehicle emissions standards: Why Australia needs them, and why they’re NOT a carbon taxLight vehicle emissions standards is good public policy that will deliver savings for motorists and cut Australia’s carbon emissions. No Elvis comeback required.
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Another 1GW solar pipeline flagged, with eye to Australian coal hubsGerman Wirsol Energy partners with Australian Renew Estate to announce 1GW+ solar pipeline, including battery ready projects.
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Cutting Edge grid controls could kill need for coalOne of the fiercest defenders of brown coal generators now says they can be replaced with wide adoption of voltage regulation technologies that can make there grid more efficient.
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Canergie’s Grant funding update on wave, microgrid projectsOver the past weeks, Carnegie received approximately $850,000 of grant funding from ARENA and the European Regional Development Fund.
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States threaten to go it alone on clean energy as Coalition loses plotStates threaten to go it alone on clean energy target as influential Coalition MP warns “people will die” because of renewable energy, and conservatives harden opposition to wind and solar and demand Australia returns to 19th century technologies.
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Clean Energy Award finalists leading change in the energy sectorA community mini grid in Victoria which helped customers to halve their power bills over summer, an innovative approach to project finance, and electricity billing based on mobile phone plans are some of the finalists announced today in the 2017 Clean Energy Council Awards.
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Unlocking the potential of Australia’s tidal energyAustralia’s tidal energy resource will be mapped in unprecedented detail in a new study funded by the Commonwealth Government through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
Australian Energy Market Operator warns on over-loading storage on wind, solar
AEMO cautious about over-loading storage on wind, solar farms http://reneweconomy.com.au/aemo-cautious-about-over-loading-storage-on-wind-solar-farms-18966/, By Sophie Vorrath & Giles Parkinson on 11 July 2017 The head of the Australian Energy Market Operator, Audrey Zibelman, has expressed caution about suggestions that new wind and solar farms should have to match their entire capacity with an equivalent amount of battery storage.
The need for wind and solar farms to include battery storage was raised by chief scientist Alan Finkel in his recently released review, although it left such requirements at the discretion of the AEMO.
However, energy minister Josh Frydenberg has been arguing, in both the Coalition party room and in public lectures, that the ratio should approximate one megawatt hour for every megawatt of installed capacity.
Although many wind and solar farms, both new and existing, are considering adding storage to shift their load or provide network services, the requirement of matching each MW for MWh is seen as overkill, and an attempt to turn wind and solar into baseload generators, when flexibility and reliability is the key.
“This is a dynamic issue. So having generators purchase a certain amount (of storage) and thinking (in terms of) once that is done, is probably not going to be the optimal way forward.
“Is that the optimal way to get resources in – in other words to have a static approach – or should we create a dynamic approach where AEMO identifies the amount of reliability that’s required; there’s a mechanism to procure it in the system; and we do it in the most economic way?” Zibelman said.
“We need to make sure the system remains reliable. …The concern I have… is that if you leave it and we set a static number, there’s only one thing that we can be clear about, and that is that it is probably going to be wrong. It’s either going to be too much or too little.
“So we’re going to want think about how do we approach this in a much more dynamic way, with changing the nature of the system.
”So, while I get the desire, I think we would like an opportunity to explore, is that the best result for consumers.”
The CSIRO and Energy Networks Australia have pointed out that most Australian grids will likely not need significant amounts of storage anytime soon because anything less than 30-50 per cent penetrations is “trivial”.
South Australia, however, is reaching saturation, which is why the world’s biggest lithium-ion battery storage project will be located there, followed by others which will allow more wind and solar farms.
Zibelman, speaking at a CEDA conference in Melbourne, said her organisation and others wanted to “get on with it” and implement some of the much needed reforms in the energy market, including some of those identified in the Finkel Review.
“100 per cent of people I have talked to across the industry are saying ‘we’ve got to get on with it,” she said.
“Paula and John and I want to get on with it. … we’ve got to make these changes. We don’t want to waste this crisis.”
Zibelman said she was looking forward to the COAG meeting on Friday and wants them to endorse broad recommendations of Finkel.
“(We’re not only solving issues for Australia) …we’re solving issues for the rest of the world,” she said. “We have to remember that economics is driving all of this. It’s not just about policy.”
Greenhouse gas emissions of Australian States; – Queensland’s the worst
Queensland remains Australia’s biggest greenhouse gas emitter, Brisbane Times, Tony Moore, 12 July 17
Queensland is still Australia’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gasses, according to the latest research released by the federal government.
Those emissions come mainly from coal and gas burned for electricity generation, transport and from land clearing, according to the annual National Greenhouse Accounts. The information, released in May, shows Queensland contributes 28.3 per cent of Australia’s national greenhouse emissions.
Queensland’s carbon emissions increased 0.8 per cent between 2014 and 2015 to 152.1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse gas emissions.
On Tuesday, the Queensland government announced two plans to reduce carbon emissions by 30 per cent by 2030 and to a “net zero” by 2050 compared with 2005 levels.
Australia’s carbon emitters
- Queensland – 28.3 per cent of the nation’s emissions (up 0.8 per cent).
- New South Wales – 24.8 per cent (down 11.6 per cent).
- Victoria – 22.3 per cent (up 2 two per cent).
- Western Australia – 16.1 per cent (up 30.5 per cent).
- South Australia – 5.6 per cent (down 2 per cent).
- Northern Territory – 2.4 per cent (down 24.7 per cent).
- Australian Capital Territory – 0.3 per cent (up 11.2 per cent).
- Tasmania – 0.2 per cent (down 95.4 per cent).
- External territories – 0.01 per cent (up by 151 per cent). Australia’s external territories include Norfolk Island, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Heard and McDonald Islands and the Coral Sea Islands…….
The statistics show the biggest contributor to Queensland’s 152 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions in 2015 came from stationary energy sources, including electricity generation and manufacturing. Land use changes came a far third.
Overall in Queensland, the greenhouse gas figures showed 55 million tones of greenhouse gas emissions (26.1 per cent) came from energy industries………..http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/queensland-remains-australias-biggest-greenhouse-gas-emitter-20170711-gx951t.html
Peter Martin on the role of gas in causing Australia’s high electricity prices
It’s not the wind, it’s the gas. Why power prices are going berserk http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/comment/it-not-the-wind-its-the-gas-why-power-prices-are-going-berserk-20170712-gx9lxe.html, Peter Martin, 12 July 17
Prepare for a shock. On July 1 electricity prices jumped 15 to 20 per cent in NSW, 16 to 20 per cent in South Australia, 19 per cent in the Australian Capital Territory and 11 per cent in Western Australia.
All this, three years to the day since the Coalition axed the carbon tax.
Victoria gets six months’ grace, with increases of about the same size due in January.
And those are just the retail prices. Wholesale prices and those charged to businesses that buy directly are up an extraordinary 60 to 70 per cent. It’s renewables that are doing it, along with the closure of Victoria’s giant Hazelwood coal-fired power generator, according to Tony Abbott.
The truth is simpler, and speaks volumes about the appalling way we’ve handled energy planning.
In his latest emissions audit prepared for the Australia Institute, the Australian National University’s Hugh Saddler graphs the South Australian wholesale price since 1999 alongside the share of its electricity output produced by wind. There’s no relationship. As the share of wind has climbed to 45 per cent, the wholesale electricity price has moved both up and down in real terms, and even now is slightly below the peak reached in the days when wind powered just 5 per cent of the state.
His second graph shows an ultra-clear relationship. The electricity price has moved up and down in tandem with the gas price, almost exactly.
“The correlation is striking,” Saddler says. “It confirms that higher wholesale electricity prices, and hence higher retail prices, are almost entirely caused by higher gas prices.”
“A similar, though less stark effect is seen in the other mainland eastern states – this is not a malfunction of the National Electricity Market, but precisely how it was expected to operate.”
Gas is the swing fuel. Although it doesn’t supply a particularly large portion of Australia’s electricity, it usually provides the last bit when nothing else is available, and at those moments it determines the price.
Things were set up that way because back in the 1980s and 1990s electricity suppliers around the world realised they would need to transition to low-emission fuels. They wouldn’t go straight away to zero emissions because that would be expensive and low emissions weren’t yet required by law. Instead they met the future halfway, knowing that if instead of building new coal-fired power stations they built new gas-fired ones, they would be better able to deal with the carbon price or carbon rules when they came.
It helped that gas was ridiculously cheap.
But then at about the same time they moved towards a carbon tax, the Rudd and Gillard governments approved massive gas export terminals in Queensland with the ability to suck up gas from as far afield as Bass Strait and ship it to Japan.
For a while, gas prices actually fell as production ramped up in anticipation of the export deals, but couldn’t leave the country. Then, when the terminals were complete and exports began, prices went berserk. Whereas once it had cost gas-fired power stations very little to come in as the swing supplier, suddenly it cost them and their customers big-time.
And there are few other swing suppliers. Coal-fired plants usually can’t do it. They are either on or off, and they take a long time to turn on. Wind can’t do it. The blades are either turning or they’re not. Same with the sun. Only hydro-electricity is as good as gas at rapidly responding to peaks (better, actually) but when the water that turns the turbines is used up, it can’t turn them again until it rains.
Elon Musk and the South Australian government have begun to find a way out. The 100-megawatt battery farm the Tesla chief has promised South Australia (the biggest in the world) will indeed be tiny compared to South Australia’s needs, as Josh Frydenberg, Barnaby Joyce and all manner of Coalition MPs have been quick to point out. But, as the central role of gas has made clear, you don’t need to produce the bulk of the power in order to determine the price for power. What’s needed is to be able to provide the last bit, very quickly, when all alternatives have been exhausted. Far from creating the problem of high prices, South Australia may be able to help solve it.
And it’ll do something else. Its lights went out on September 28 when its gas and wind generators shut down during a storm. Most of them stayed off even after the storm was over because, just like gas cooktops, they can’t be started without electricity. Musk and South Australia are about to gift us a battery.
Shortcomings of the Finkel Energy Review
Finkel: Let’s not be railroaded into a bad deal on clean energy http://reneweconomy.com.au/finkel-lets-not-be-railroaded-into-a-bad-deal-on-clean-energy-77145/, By John Grimes on 13 July 2017 The last decade of climate wars has ground everyone down. People, understandably, want to see a resolution. They want to see a consensus on climate and energy policy and they have looked to the Finkel Review to provide that consensus.
Some have even gone so far as to say that a bad deal is better than no deal at all.
But a bad deal IS a bad deal and neither industry nor the community should put up with a climate change or energy agreement that locks in poor climate change and energy outcomes.
A false consensus has emerged over the Finkel Review and it is important to point out the significant weaknesses with this approach.
It is particularly important that State and Federal Energy Ministers, meeting tomorrow, do not lock in poor climate change and energy outcomes and continue to push for energy market reform.
The Australian Solar Council and Energy Storage Council, as peak national bodies for the solar and energy storage industries, strongly supported the Finkel Review as an independent exercise and we appreciated and applauded the consultation process undertaken by the Review.
The preliminary Finkel Review report stated “we have a once in a generation opportunity to reform the national electricity market” and we agreed.
We expected a blueprint for energy market reform, but the final Finkel Review report fell well short of that mark.
Instead of a blueprint, the Finkel Review delivered a set of piecemeal recommendations that do not represent a design for a 21st century electricity market or pathways to the necessary transformation of our electricity system.
The Finkel Review has five major shortcomings:
- Ignoring the evidence demonstrating the need for major cuts in greenhouse emissions from the electricity sector to meet current and future international greenhouse gas emission targets;
- Underestimating the transformation that is occurring and accelerating in the electricity sector and downplays the likely uptake of household batteries and smart energy systems and fails to recognise the capacity to integrate these systems by a transition to a distributed energy storage system, as envisaged by the CSIRO-ENA Energy Transformation Roadmap;
- Seeking to impose unfair obligations on new renewable energy generation whilst imposing no obligations on existing coal or gas-fired generators – requiring energy storage to be attached to specific projects rather than taking a network systems approach to energy storage will drive up the cost of new renewable energy projects;
- Recommending a Clean Energy Target and proposing emission levels which would lock in higher emissions, when its own evidence indicates the cheapest and most efficient option for the electricity sector are the ‘lowest’ emissions renewable technologies; and
- Recommending an additional regulatory body and giving existing energy regulators additional responsibilities rather than consolidating the number of regulators and reforming the regulatory environment.
- Greenhouse gas emissions
The Finkel Review has modelled the Federal Government’s emissions reduction target of a 26-28% reduction in Australia’s emissions by 2030, rather than responding to the recognised emissions reductions required to meet Australia’s current international treaty obligations.
Further the Review has recommended that the electricity sector targets should be proportional at 28% – ignoring that worldwide the electricity sector offers a greater opportunity for emissions reduction using existing commercial technologies and systems.
It is widely recognised that electricity generation is one of the easiest and lowest cost means of reducing emissions and that the electricity sector can contribute much more than a simplistic proportional share to achieve emissions reductions.
The Climate Change Authority has suggested the electricity sector could reduce its emissions by 66 per cent by 2030 to meet Australia’s international climate change commitments.
The Finkel Review should have modelled significantly greater reductions in electricity sector emissions and drawn its conclusions and recommendations from that.
Transformation of the electricity sector
The Finkel Review states “battery storage is poised to be the next major consumer-driven deployment of energy technology. Upfront costs for solar photovoltaic systems with storage are currently high, with long payback periods for most consumers.
Bloomberg expects the average payback period for residential consumers to fall below 10 years in the early 2020s, with around 100,000 battery storage systems to support rooftop solar photovoltaic generation predicted to be installed by 2020.”
The Australian Solar Council and Energy Storage Council is currently undertaking a comprehensive analysis of the Australian energy storage market and we estimate 120,000-500,000 battery storage systems are likely to be installed in Australia by 2020.
CSIRO and Energy Networks Australia have forecast there could be almost eight gigawatt hours of storage in Australia by 2020.
It is likely the Finkel Review will significantly underestimate the uptake of battery storage and the capacity to integrate residential and small business energy storage systems into a much larger peoples power plant or virtual power station.
This is not simply a large missed opportunity, it is a failure to plan for the likely reality.
The history of solar technology deployment shows us that cost reductions and uptake have always exceeded forecasts. Bloomberg itself draws attention to the innate and consistent conservatism in its new energy technology forecasts.
Generator Reliability Obligations on new renewable energy plants
The Finkel Review’s recommendation to require all new generators to have energy storage could significantly increase the number of large-scale energy storage projects up to and beyond 2020, although it may also artificially drive up the cost of large-scale renewable energy projects, reducing their viability.
This is a requirement not imposed on current generators of any technology. Coal and other fossil fuel generators, are intermittent generators: they provide firm power only when they are generating– and in Australia that is around 85% of the time. The other 15% is provided by providing additional capacity into the network.
The proposed Generator Reliability Obligation (GRO) will almost certainly be a higher cost approach than a market-based approach to firm capacity in the network.
It is discriminatory ultimately at the customers’ expense and ignores the engineering and network systems-based solutions that are being implemented world-wide to meet the outcomes sought.
The GRO may also ignore the potential for off-river pumped hydro to provide a range of services to the network including firm power to the grid complementary to variable renewable generators.
The Review has proposed a backward-looking engineering solution when it should have simply defined the outcomes desired.
The world is moving to transform grids to intelligent distributed two-way energy flow systems because they offer increased security, reliability and quality of supply at a lower cost than new fossil fuel or nuclear based generation.
There are more effective ways to add storage to the national electricity market through a system-wide approach.
One option would be to encourage the market to develop proposals through reverse auctions, which would determine the price and locations of energy storage systems. Another option would be through a capacity market.
Evidence was given to the Review on the importance of demand response and demand management tools and the critical role of digitisation and software management which it appears has not been understood.
Closure of coal-fired power stations
The Finkel Review has suggested there be a minimum notification period of at least three years for the intention to close coal-fired power stations.
This is an administrative arrangement with no financial or planning signals for closure and is not as efficient as a market mechanism. It provides no mechanism for the orderly closure of coal-fired power stations.
All this proposal does is to provide a small amount of certainty over a three-year period. It provides no means of ensuring continued operation, or operation on demand, and provides no specific incentive for new generation.
It also fails to match closures to emissions reductions. Less polluting power stations could close before more emissions intensive power stations.
We urge COAG Energy Ministers to take a different approach and develop a plan for the orderly closure of coal-fired power stations. We believe the model from the ANU, developed by Professor Frank Jotzo and others, offers a better path using market based mechanisms.
Clean Energy Target
The proposal for a Clean Energy Target appears to be a political solution to a political problem, rather than an attempt to introduce the most effective mechanisms for reducing emissions and encouraging renewable energy generation and energy storage.
The Australian Solar Council and Energy Storage Council support the continuation of current state government reverse auction programs in the absence of a national reverse auction scheme for renewable energy or a national price on carbon.
If the Government proceeds with a less efficient Clean Energy Target, the emissions intensity threshold must be set at a level that helps deliver Australia’s international climate change commitments and must be flexible enough that it can be changed to capture Australia’s future climate change commitments.
Governance
The National Electricity Market is not functioning effectively and the multitude of agencies responsible for the NEM adds to the confusion and inefficiency. Australia is the only country where the two energy market functions sit in separate bodies.
In its 2012 report on network regulation, the Productivity Commission was particularly critical of what it saw as the unusual role of AEMC in setting policy, rather than serving policy makers.
Unfortunately, the Finkel Review increases this complexity by recommending a new body, the Energy Security Board, and giving new responsibilities to existing agencies.
Governance arrangements need to be streamlined, with the Australian Energy Market Operator and the Australian Energy Market Commission merged. The new body should be led by someone who understands the extraordinary transformation that the electricity sector is going through globally and in Australia.
We believe that Energy Ministers need to take responsibility for preparing a national energy plan that takes a broader view of the changes needed for the future and puts implementation in the hands of governments as far as possible. The previous issues caused by outsourcing policy making to the AEMC should be avoided.
Other Matters
The Australian Solar Council and Energy Storage Council calls on all Energy Ministers to endorse the following measures:
- Establish a plan for the orderly closure of coal-fired power stations;
- Make action on climate change a key objective of the National Electricity Market and ensure that all climate change and energy policies are consistent with Australia’s international climate change obligations;
- Commit to at least 50 per cent renewables by 2030;
- Introduce a 5-minute settlement rule;
- Enable markets in peer to peer trading and demand response; and
- Replace the Australian Energy Regulator and Australian Energy Market Commission with a new combined energy market rule maker and regulator.
A bad deal is not better than no deal at all.
A bad deal locks in poor climate change and energy outcomes.
Energy Ministers still have a “once in a generation opportunity to reform the national electricity market” and we urge them to continue that work.
Australia should join UN nuclear weapons ban treaty, when it opens in September
Aust on ‘wrong side’ of nuclear weapon ban http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/aust-on-wrong-side-of-nuclear-weapon-ban/news-story/be98118f29f512aad05aac1134546ad4, Belinda Merhab, Australian Associated Press, July 8, 2017 Australia is accused of being on the wrong side of history after ignoring a United Nations vote to ban nuclear weapons.
No plans for real development of Adani coal mine expansion. Adani family will benefit most, if it happens
Adani’s Carmichael coal mine has slow ‘official start’ planned, leaked document shows, ABC News, by Stephen Long , 9 Jul 17 Flanked by Commonwealth and Queensland politicians, the giant Indian conglomerate Adani last month announced that its board had given final investment approval to its controversial mega-mine in North Queensland, and declared the “official start” of the Carmichael coal mining project.
But what does that mean in practice? For the moment, it seems, not much.
The ABC has obtained the plan of operations for the Carmichael coal mine project submitted to the Queensland Government last month.
It covers just six months and involves next to nothing: just re-establishing signage at the site, recommissioning an existing temporary camp and installing some additional demountable buildings.
“The plan of operations will be amended in due course to include all early works related to commencement of construction activities for the mine and related infrastructure works,” it says.
The lack of a substantive plan for development of the mine “is a huge embarrassment for the Adani cheer squad including the Prime Minister, the Premier of Queensland and [Minister for Resources and Northern Australia] Matt Canavan, who have bent over backwards to get this project over the line,” said Rick Humphries, co-ordinator of the mine rehabilitation campaign for the Lock the Gate Alliance — a group established by farmers to fight “inappropriate” coal and gas mining.
“It only really commits Adani to maintaining the existing temporary camp and looking after the signs and roads,” he said.
“It raises serious doubts about the project’s financial viability……..
Adani’s mine project, if it were to proceed to full scale, would be the largest-ever coal mining development in Australia and the biggest export coal project in the world, involving a series of open cut mines and underground pit with a capacity of 60 million tonnes a year.
Adani would also have to build an additional port at the Abbot Point Coal Terminal — which it owns — to accommodate output from the mine, though there has been speculation that Adani intends to scale down the mining venture to less than half the initial planned capacity.
Despite the question marks about Adani’s ability to finance the venture there are clear incentives for the Adani family to make the project happen.
An “overarching royalty deed” at the project will see $2 from each tonne of coal mined beyond the first 400,000 tonnes each year go a private company ultimately owned by an Adani family entity registered in the Cayman Islands.
This could potentially mean that hundreds of millions, or billions of dollars, from the venture could flow to the Adani family rather than to shareholders of the publicly-listed company that owns the Carmichael mine.
The ABC has also been told that the response of Adani’s billionaire chairman Gautam Adani to years of activism and opposition to the mine in Australia is a determination to see the project realised. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-10/adani-queensland-coal-mine-plan-raises-doubts-on-viability/8691020
1 This month.
20 September –National Day of Action in Melbourne on the International Day of Peace
Help Aunty Sue Protect Her Land and Sacred Sites From Destructive Rocket Testing.
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Australians deserve the truth
about
AUKUS – https://aukuspublicinquiry.com/
PETITION – To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Government
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity
Antinuclear 