Anti wind farm group’s ‘sprawling and inarticulate’ tactics to try to delay King Island wind project
Judge labels King Island wind farm legal challenge ‘sprawling and inarticulate’ http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-01/king-island-wind-farm-legal-challenge-too-27sprawling27/5063722 1 Nov 2013 A legal challenge against Hydro Tasmania’s King Island wind farm proposal has been described as “sprawling” and liable to create additional costs.
The No TasWind Farm group has appeared in the Federal Court in a bid to stop Hydro proceeding with its $2 billion project. Lawyers representing the group say Hydro did not have broad community support for the wind farm and it should not proceed.
Justice Duncan Kerr described the application as massively sprawling, inarticulate and likely to result in significant costs to Hydro Tasmania, without concluding anything. He has ordered the two parties to meet and narrow down the claim before returning to court later this month. Hydro wants to build 200-turbines on the island, creating the largest wind farm in the Southern Hemisphere.
It said the project would not proceed to the feasibility study without the backing of most of the residents. The survey in June found just under 59 per cent support, which Hydro described as sufficient. The close vote prompted the opponents to launch a legal challenge to stop the project. In a statement,
Hydro says a decision on the project’s future will only be made after a feasibility study. Several studies are underway looking at whether the TasWind project is commercially and technically feasible. Hydro says the court challenge will not affect the timing of this phase.
Despite the Australian government, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation continues to lend money
Clean Energy Finance Corporation defies Government call to stop lending ABC News, By Anna Henderson and Jane Norman 1 Nov 2013, The investment fund set up under Labor to encourage low emission technology and renewable energy projects has rejected a request from the Treasurer Joe Hockey to stop making new investments.
The announcement comes ahead of a key shadow cabinet meeting today at which Labor MPs will discuss their next move on the future of the carbon tax. The Coalition’s carbon price repeal policy includes provisions to dismantle the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC).Mr Hockey is expected to introduce the legislation later this year and has asked the CEFC to stop lending in the interim.
However, the board and executive of the fund have decided to continue making investment decisions.
In a statement the CEFC says:
“Until legislation is passed, the CEFC is required by law to fulfil its responsibilities under the legislative framework in which it operates. This includes performing our investment function and therefore we are continuing to progress investment proposals.”
The CEFC has already invested more than half a billion dollars in low emissions projects…… http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-01/labor-negative-political-climate-carbon-policy/5063658
Legal bullying threats now adopted by wind farm opponents
“We’re going to the bullying tactics, are we? I don’t know what it’s all about, but I assume that’s what it is, old school bullying tactics.”…..
Mr Poile said there were a lot of people and groups he did not recognise as locals, including anti-wind farm activist Sarah Laurie from the Waubra Foundation, based in South Australia.
Threat of legal action against wind farm hosts, Canberra Times, Hamish Boland-Rudder October 29, 2013 An anti-wind farm resident of Collector says he will sue his neighbours should they become turbine hosts as part of a proposed wind farm in the small community north of Canberra. Continue reading
Thai company to invest in solar energy in Australia
Ratch To Invest $232 Million In Australian Solar Farms http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=4001 28 Oct 13 Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding PCL has announced it will invest AUD $232 million in developing two solar farms in Australia.According to the Bangkok Post, the two solar farms will have a combined capacity of 53 megawatts and will replace the recently shuttered coal-fired Collinsville power station.
Earlier this month we reported Whitsunday Regional Council had approved an application by Ratch for the development of a solar farm at the Collinsville Power Station site. Continue reading
Queensland University gets a second, and even larger, solar array
Queensland’s Largest Solar Panel Array Announced http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=3998 27 Oct 13, Queensland University will soon be home to the largest solar power system in the state.
Announced last week, the 3.275 megawatt pilot plant will incorporate more than 34,000 ground mounted solar panels. The solar farm will be constructed on a 12.6 hectare former airstrip site at the University’s Gatton campus, which is situated 90km west of Brisbane.
Doubling as a research facility, the Gatton plant will augment the University’s existing St Lucia campus 1.22 megawatt photovoltaic array; which is currently Australia’s largest rooftop solar installation. Continue reading
How Origin Energy is strangling renewables
Energy giant ‘actively blocking renewables‘ http://www.businessspectator.com.au/news/2013/10/23/renewable-energy/energy-giant-actively-blocking-renewables Origin Energy is actively blocking renewable energy, a report has found.Co-produced by Greenpeace Australia Pacific and 100% Renewable, a community campaign for clean energy, the report – titled Strangling Renewables: Origin Energy’s campaign against renewable energy – accuses the energy giant of strangling renewables as part of a strategy to prolong the dominance of gas and fossil fuels.
“As this report shows, Origin is strangling renewable energy in a number of ways, including running a smear campaign against the renewable energy target, which sets Australia’s goal for the amount of our energy produced by renewables, and using misleading public statements to manipulate the general public and politicians alike,” said Lindsay Soutar, the national director of 100% Renewable.
“Origin’s Managing Director, Grant King, has repeatedly said the renewable energy target is a primary driver of increased energy costs. But, that is inaccurate, with the main cause of price rises – at over 70 per cent – due to over investment in poles and wires.”
Greenpeace Australia head of program Ben Pearson said Origin has used its market power to sideline clean energy sources by underinvesting in its own renewables portfolio. “Origin has also underinvested in its own renewable energy portfolio and is blocking other clean energy developers projects from going forward – using its market power to keep renewables on sidelines,” Ben Pearson, Head of Program at Greenpeace Australia, says.
The report shows that Origin has invested heavily in gas projects, including developing new LNG projects and gas generating plants, and also generates 75 per cent of its profit through its retail arm – but increasingly these are threatened by the emergence of cheaper, cleaner wind and solar.“In truth, renewables are working. As this report shows, renewables are reducing energy bills and producing clean energy in an efficient way. Not only that, but wind power is lowering wholesale power prices. And other countries are surpassing us with more ambitious renewable energy goals,” Ms Soutar says.
A review of Australia’s Renewable Energy Target, which is 20 per cent renewables by 2020, is scheduled to occur early next year. Origin boss Grant King has said he would prefer a higher RET target later – such as 30 per cent by 2030.
Tricks and strong passions in the corporate drive against renewable energy
The trick for these people is to ignore the benefits of renewables – increased investment, more jobs, lowering emissions, delivering a faster transition to low carbon economy, solar delivering cheaper alternative to homes and businesses – and instead paint a doomsday scenario.
As Wilson (rightly) pointed out, there is a vast reserve of anti-renewables passion in the rump of the National Party and the Liberal party backbench open to such rhetoric– which insiders say is being whipped up by new Liberal MP Angus Taylor.
Wilson insisted that renewables “are producing a product that no one wants to buy.” This ignores the fact that Australian households and businesses are still spending more than $1 billion a year installing their own rooftop solar systems – even with most subsidies removed. (
The dark forces lined up against renewables in Australia http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/the-dark-forces-lined-up-against-renewables-in-australia-20629 By Giles Parkinson on 24 October 2013 The Australian renewables industry is under no illusion about the extent of the forces lined up against it following the election of a highly conservative Coalition government in Canberra.
The antipathy to renewables in large sections of the Coalition is deep set, as it is among some of the highly influential and ultra-conservative think tanks such as the Institute of Public Affairs, and various industry lobby groups.
But even battle-weary supporters of solar and wind energy – and those firmly in the middle of the road – were taken aback by an extraordinary tirade against renewable energy delivered in Sydney on Wednesday by Burchell Wilson, a senior economist at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
ACCI is one of the most visible and influential lobby groups in Canberra, and its opposition to climate policy, carbon pricing, and renewables incentives, is well known. Still, no-one was quite ready for the “venomous rant” – as one observor described it – against the renewable energy target that Wilson delivered to the Eastern Australian Energy Outlook Conference.
Wilson’s approach was not atypical of the sort of rhetoric we have come used to hearing from conservative energy ministers – be they state of federal – and the incumbent utilities, who are threatened by the rise of renewables, and their cheerleaders in the conservative think tanks. Continue reading
Australian utilities’ determined fight to stop solar energy development
The solar industry in response is feeling outraged because of the way in which the sector has been singled out when the greatest cross subsidy in the industry is given to users of air-conditioners. This is something that the Australian government itself concedes in a white paper revealing that each $1,500 air con system imposes five times that amount in network costs on other users.
Australian utilities are therefore deciding to fight back, rather than adapting their business model to the new renewable economy. They hope to rely on regulatory protection in order to knock back the take-up in solar PV installation.
Australian utilities raise the barricades against solar http://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/article/australian-utilities-raise-the-barricades-against-solar-20131023 Robin WhitlockTuesday, 22 October 2013 Utilities in Australia are now pushing for higher network charges, refusing connections, removing discounts, forcing tariff changes on solar consumers and downsizing rooftop proposals in their bid to resist the growth of solar PV
Hostility to renewable energy in Australia has been notched up a little again as the country’s major utilities prepare to brake or even halt the rapid uptake of solar PV in the country. They are currently pushing for higher network charges, refusing connections, removing discounts, forcing tariff changes on solar consumers and downsizing rooftop proposals. This activity comes even after most of the subsidies for solar have been removed and represents a tacit admission among major generators, network operators and electricity retailers that renewable energy, particular solar PV, is hurting their business model.
The latest move has come from the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) which has released a “strategic priorities” document that as described the growth in solar PV as one of the most pressing issues for the electricity industry, suggesting that network tariffs do not reflect the reductions in the use of the grid caused by solar installation. Continue reading
Australia’s great underused energy resource – sunlight
Australia – where the Sun hits the hardest The Starlight Walker,
Mathieu Isidro October 8, 2013 Today, I’d like to talk about solar radiation and its consequences in Australia (it is, after all, linked to astronomy and heliophysics).
Look at the bright red spots in the Pacific, mid-Atlantic and Australia where irradiance (the power of solar radiation) is highest.
Australia receives much more solar radiation than California or even the Mediterranean famed for its sunny summers and beautiful beaches. And while it does not necessarily mean blue skies and sunny days (solar radiation can be pretty high on a cloudy day), there is a correlation between strong solar radiation, heat, the climate, and health. Solar radiation includes visible light, but also infrared radiation responsible for the “heat” sensation you feel and ultraviolet radiation responsible for sunburns.
So, what is irradiance? Irradiance is the power of electromagnetic radiation on a unit of area, and is measured in watts par square metre (W/m2). In Australia, it reaches the scale’s 2nd maximum of 270-280 W/m2 on a large portion of the country. The sunlight that hits Australia is really strong, and there’s lots of it.
In fact, the map shows there are only three important continental areas to reach such highs: Australia, eastern China (Tibet) and central Africa at the intersection of Sudan, Chad, southern Libya and southern Egypt. Australia is the largest, making it, some claim,the world’s sunniest country.
Last week, a friend sent me this incredible map……..So much irradiance tells me Australia is a great if not the best place on Earth to produce solar energy. The map also made me realise Australia is probably the safest, most politically stable and most accessible place on Earth among the areas where solar radiation is highest. The sun is shining strong throughout the year, and we have large flat uninhabited areas ready to host giant solar farms. And yet, the largest solar farms are located in California, Spain, and…Germany!
In August, The country’s top expert body on climate change, the ex- government-funded Climate Commission (scrapped by the new government and now reborn as the crowd-funded Climate Council) recognised this, writing:
Germany receives less sunlight than Victoria but has more installed capacity than any other country (…)
Australia is the world’s sunniest continent with enormous, but largely underutilised, potential for solar power generation.
In fact, Australia doesn’t even make it into the long list of the largest photovoltaic plants in the world. You have to wonder about that….. http://thestarlightwalker.wordpress.com/2013/10/08/australia-where-the-sun-hits-the-hardest/
Government and electricity utilities caught unawares by solar energy developments
Energy ministers in NSW, Queensland and Western Australia admit to being taken by surprise by the take—up of solar, even after the ending of most subsidies. Queensland generators and network operators such as Stanwell Corp, Energex andErgon Energy have also noted the profound impact of solar, although they vary about whether this is a blight, a blessing, or an opportunity to the future.
Origin says solar and storage coming quicker than thought REneweconomy, By Giles Parkinson on 22 October 2013 Origin Energy, Australia’s largest electricity utility, says the energy industry has underestimated the onset of disruptive technologies such as solar PV and battery storage.
In comments made to a conference hosted by GE, the largest supplier of energy equipment in the world, Origin Energy’s head of energy markets, Frank Calabria, said the uptake of distributed generation such as solar and storage had taken – and would likely continue to take – the industry by surprise.
“Technology will disrupt,” Calabria told a “GE at Work” session on Powering Australia. “I think we have underestimated the rate of onset –not just of solar PV, but PV with the combination of storage as a greater disruption potential. That is not too far away.”
The comments by Calabria shouldn’t be a surprise, given that Australia now has a total of nearly 3GW of rooftop solar PV, and one of the highest levels of rooftop solar penetration in the world. That, in turn, has led to falling demand from the grid, reduced wholesale electricity prices, and the mothballing of nearly a similar amount of coal-fired generation as a consequence.
There is now a growing recognition of the disruptive influences of solar within the Australian electricity industry – something they did not want to admit even just 12 months ago.
Energy ministers in NSW, Queensland and Western Australia admit to being taken by surprise by the take—up of solar, even after the ending of most subsidies. Queensland generators and network operators such as Stanwell Corp, Energex andErgon Energy have also noted the profound impact of solar, although they vary about whether this is a blight, a blessing, or an opportunity to the future.
Later, Calabria told RenewEconomy: “No-one anticipated the level of solar to have penetrated the market as much as it has today …. So industries like ours have to face the prospect of underestimating what they can do in the future.
“If we don’t watch that – combined with what is happening in storage – we could underestimate its development going forward. It would continue to promote a trend of more generation in people’s homes.”…..
The Coalition has said that it will deliver electricity price cuts of 10 per cent by repealing the carbon price. Calabria and others on the panel said the challenge was making this price reduction clear to consumers, as it was likely to be overshadowed by other factors – such as rising network costs (Energex has flagged a 10 per cent interest in those costs next year)……
As RenewEconomy has reported, the renewables industry is seeking to find a compromise position to try to avoid a lengthy review of the RET – promised by the new government – which would translate into another lengthy hiatus in investment. It is understood that the Clean Energy Council is hosting a strategy meeting with key stakeholders today (Tuesday)……http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/origin-says-solar-and-storage-coming-quicker-than-thought-76354
Australia’s exceptionally strong solar radiation – a hazard,but also a blessing?
Australia – where the Sun hits the hardest The Starlight Walker, Mathieu Isidro October 8, 2013 “…….Such strong solar radiation also means high ultraviolet radiation (UV is part of the electromagnetic spectrum, like visible light and infrared), which is really bad for your health. In fact, Australia has the highest level of skin cancer in the world.Some 2 out of 3 Australians will be diagnosed with skin cancer before the age of 70, and Australians are 4 times more likely to develop skin cancer than any other form of cancer. So, if you’re coming from abroad, cover up, wear sunglasses and hats and leave your 15+ sunscreen at home, as the minimum recommended here is 30+.
. Finally, the main point I’d like to raise is strong solar radiation also means extreme weather, and it’s getting worse (Read this page to better understand the complex links between solar radiation and greenhouse effect). Australia had a record drought for the better part of the last decade and regularly experiences terrible bushfires. A couple of years ago, Australia also experienced its worst summer. It was so bad that it became known as the Angry Summer. The Climate Council, at the time, produced this scary map summarising it:……..
Australia experiences what might be the world’s strongest solar radiation (and worsening), and it’s a terrible challenge for the country, putting it with other places, particularly in the Pacific and arctic regions, on the frontline of climate change. It has terrible consequences for our environment, for our health and so for our economy.
But it could also be a blessing. Australia could seize this opportunity and invest in a green revolution to harness the Sun’s power in our country, which would in the long term ensure energy independence, sustainability and cheap, permanent energy for the entire country. Surely that is worth thinking about. And like this document will show – published by the Climate Commission in August just before being axed -, there is hope. http://thestarlightwalker.wordpress.com/2013/10/08/australia-where-the-sun-hits-the-hardest/
Wine industry goes solar in a big way at De Bortoli
De Bortoli to launch Oz wine industry’s largest solar system REneweconomy, By Sophie Vorrath on 15 October 2013 De Bortoli winery near Griffith NSW will launch its new solar power and hot water system on Thursday this week, having completed installation of a 230kW PV generator and 200kW solar thermal preheater – both individually the largest installed of their kind at any Australian winery to date.
The two solar power installations at Bilbul Estate are expected to save the third-generation family wine company tens of thousands of dollars a year through offset electricity and gas consumption, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the site by more than 314 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year……http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/de-bortoli-to-launch-oz-wine-industrys-largest-solar-system-49988
Clean Energy Finance Corp is making a profit
Green investment bank profitable as Abbott axe looms, CEO Yates says, SMH, October 19, 2013
- Clean Energy Finance Corp., Australia’s green development bank earmarked for closing by Prime Minister Tony Abbott, is making a profit and prodding commercial banks to lend, according to its chief executive officer.
“We’re operating profitably already, with our contracted investments expected to earn an average return of around 7 percent,” which is above the bank’s capital cost of about 3 percent, Oliver Yates, CEO of the bank founded less than four months ago by the previous government, told delegates at a conference in London. He declined to comment on Abbott’s plan to close CEFC, citing public-service rules……
- The development bank has built a loan portfolio of around $536 million and helped projects get debt and equity of about $2.2 billion, including from other institutions, Yates said at the Climate Markets & Investment Association event earlier this week. The deals will cut emissions by about 3.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually, he said. They include wind farms and a tomato farm that uses solar energy to desalinate seawater.
‘Meaningful impact’
“We’ve been able to make a meaningful impact offering finance on a commercial basis,” Yates said. “Though we have the capacity to provide concessional loans, for the great majority of cases that hasn’t proved necessary. Our job is not to make it easy for the banks, but to stretch them and encourage them to join into transactions with us.”
The bank has demonstrated it can generate carbon reductions at a net benefit to the taxpayer of $2.40 a ton of carbon dioxide, he said. http://www.smh.com.au/business/carbon-economy/green-investment-bank-profitable-as-abbott-axe-looms-ceo-yates-says-20131019-2vt12.html#ixzz2iNfY7eQ1
SolarShare -Canberra’s exciting new community energy project
Sun rises on a communal solar farm City News, Stephen Easton October 9, 2013 AS plans move ahead to build four fields of solar panels in the ACT, one of them Australia’s largest, there’s another with a more egalitarian spirit not far behind.
Launched in May, SolarShare plans to build a solar farm that will operate as a co-operative, rather than a company, so its member-shareholders will contribute to the cost of building its photovoltaic arrays and receive returns from the power they generate for years to come.
“Since then we’ve received about 200 registrations of interest from people who are keen to invest in excess of $670,000 in a community-owned solar farm, so we’ve received a fairly strong indication there that people support this idea, which is really great,” says project leader Lawrence McIntosh.
McIntosh is a renewable energy consultant who plays a central role in The Canberra Clean Energy Connection, a local, non-profit group that supports the ACT Government’s vision of Canberra becoming “the solar capital of Australia”…….http://citynews.com.au/2013/sun-rises-on-a-communal-solar-farm/
Abbott Government puts renewable energy projects in jeopardy
Abbott risking renewables ‘hiatus‘Business Spectator, 16 Oct, By a staff reporterAcciona Energy chief Andrew Thomson says investment in large-scale renewable energy targets could be put on hold if the Abbott government delayed confirming the Renewable Energy Target, The Australian Financial Review reports.The government is planning to review the RET next year but Mr Thomson said certainty was required to meet the existing 20 per cent, or 41 terawatt hours, target, the newspaper reports….
..Mr Thomson said Acciona’s Spanish parents would redirect capital from Australia as uncertainty reigned.
“There’s no advantage for a country or a market to keep changing the goalposts.”http://www.businessspectator.com.au/news/2013/10/16/renewable-energy/abbott-risking-renewables-hiatus
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