Energy sparks comment and commitment

ENERGY SPARKING COMMENT AND COMMITMENT

Déjà vu?

We found a curious news item recently when surfing the web:

“The Australian government is launching a major new initiative aimed at preventing global warming,” it read, “The Prime Minister has announced an investment of $500m in clean technology, much of which will look at reducing carbon emissions from coal.

“The country has been facing its worst drought in a century… destroying the livelihoods of thousands of farmers… [but] the PM has dismissed claims that the drought is the product of long-term climate change.

“In his weekly radio address, the PM said Australia would invest in new technologies to cut down emissions from fossil fuel power plants. Some of it would also go towards renewable energy systems. He stated ‘We must respond on a number of fronts. There is no one single solution that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the years ahead’.”

As you may have guessed this is an old piece, spotted on the BBC website and dated October 23, 2006 in the mistitled “Australia launches climate plans”. Monica Richter was on hand to right the record, declaring government had “set its course on a technological fix” to deal with climate change and overlooked Australia’s bountiful renewable energy resources.

“We could be exploiting these options and be a real leader in the renewable energy industry,” Monica Richter formerly of the Australian Conservation Foundation told BBC World Today. Back in 2006. Some battles just never change …

A simple solution

Global identity and climate campaigner Saul Griffiths is a popular presenter at Smart Energy Council conferences, his key message being climate change is a planetary emergency and we need to make a big switch.

Indeed, that is the title of his new book, The Big Switch.

‘We don’t have to be perfect to solve climate change. We just need to be electric [powered by renewables]. If we go hard and early on cutting emissions we have everything to win… transforming Australia into the most prosperous, entirely renewable, economy in the world.”

His book steps out the actions needed to transform infrastructure, update the grid and adapt households. Brown coal 15.3% Rooftop Solar 11.1%

Utility Solar 6.9%

Wind 10.3%

Hydro 6.6% Battery .08%

Black coal 43.6%

Gas 6.12%

The energy market mix at late February 2022

Source: OpenNEM, www.opennem.org.au

Unhealthy habits

Climate action group 350.org Australia has found that during 20202021 fossil fuel companies donated $959,155 to the three major parties, up $80,000 on the previous year. The Liberal Party received the majority, at $506,810, however the ALP was gifted $392,354.

Woodside, which is pumping millions into carbon capture and storage trials, was the largest fossil fuel donor, pledging $124,350 to the Liberals and $108,000 to Labor.

The Minerals Council of Australia donated $101,192 and $64,660 respectively and the St Baker Family Trust gave Liberal party $112,758 and Labor $52,444.

Unsurprisingly, gas companies which are among Australia’s biggest political donors are also recipients of massive public subsidies. 350 Senior Campaigner Shani Tager stated “There should be no room for fossil fuel companies in our politics but instead they’re bankrolling the major parties to try and shore up their future… it’s clear that money is talking,”

Ending on a positive note, total generation from Australia’s wind and solar plants grew 22 per cent in 2021 compared to the year prior, setting a new record and supplying more than 32 per cent of Australia’s electricity needs.

In turn coal generators market share dropped below 60 per cent and gas generation fell to 7.8 per cent, according to OpenNEM data.

A market in transition

BloombergNEF predicts that 2022 will be the first year in which more than 200GW of solar will be installed globally; possibly around 228GW which is significantly greater than earlier expectations of 206GW during 2022.

But before we pop open the prosecco, a sobering reminder that during 2021 coal power supplies generated more than half of the 6 per cent increase in global energy demand, growing 9 per cent. Deployment of renewables hit new highs of 290GW/yr however the sector grew just 6 per cent while greenhouse gas emissions from electricity rose nearly 7 per cent.

As much as 185GW of coal is reportedly under construction and 309GW more planned, however country pledges at CoP could see 88GW cancelled, according to informed sources. Further, up to 550GW of the world’s 2,110GW coal capacity has a phase out date, including some significant plants within Australia which are now slated to retire early, most notably that of Origin’s 2,880MW Eraring coal generator in NSW.