Category Archives: Fossil fuels

Closure of Australia’s biggest coal-fired power station may be delayed while renewables catch up

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States must roll out batteries, solar and wind energy more quickly to ease risk of blackouts, market operator says

Eraring, the nation’s biggest coal-fired power station, may need to delay its closure to ease blackout threats in New South Wales, while other eastern states also face “periods of high risk” because of the slow rollout of renewables, the Australian Energy Market Operator warns.

In an unusual update of its Electricity Statement of Opportunities report, Aemo forecast so-called reliability gaps in NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria unless authorities “orchestrated” faster deployment of solar and wind energy, and batteries.

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New rules for NSW polluters to require ‘credible’ plan for mitigating climate impact

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Exclusive: EPA chief executive says ‘foundational’ rule changes put climate impacts ‘front and centre' of planning process

New coalmines, gas fields and other big sources of greenhouse gases in New South Wales will need to provide more rigorous plans to minimise pollution and reduce carbon emissions before they are approved, under new rules imposed on Monday.

Revised assessment requirements and guidelines from the Environment Protection Authority mark a “foundational” tightening of rules for firms planning new projects or modifying existing ones that emit at least 25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent a year, said Tony Chappel, the NSW EPA chief executive.

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Cop29 at a crossroads in Azerbaijan with focus on climate finance

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Fossil-fuel dependent country hopes to provide bridge between wealthy global north and poor south at November gathering

Oil is inescapable in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. The smell of it greets the visitor on arrival and from the shores of the Caspian Sea on which the city is built the tankers are eternally visible. Flares from refineries near the centre light up the night sky, and you do not have to travel far to see fields of “nodding donkeys”, small piston pump oil wells about 6 metres (20ft) tall, that look almost festive in their bright red and green livery.

It will be an interesting setting for the gathering of the 29th UN climate conference of the parties, which will take place at the Olympic Stadium in November.

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‘No alternative’: EU climate chief urges MEPs not to use crisis as political tool

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Exclusive: Wopke Hoekstra says EU must press ahead with cutting greenhouse gases and use policy to bring about economic benefits

Europe’s climate chief has warned against politicians trying to use the climate crisis as a wedge issue in the forthcoming EU parliament elections, calling instead for climate policy that will bring wider economic benefits.

Wopke Hoekstra, the EU commissioner for climate action, said Europe had no choice but to press ahead with strong measures to cut greenhouse gases, whoever was in power, but added that more attention was needed to help businesses thrive in a low-carbon world.

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Anthony Albanese faces internal revolt from inner-city Labor MPs over gas strategy

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Resource minister Madeleine King released party’s future gas strategy, which says new sources will be needed ‘to 2050 and beyond’

Anthony Albanese is facing an internal revolt with Labor backbenchers pushing back against the government’s support for new gas production.

Five inner-city MPs have criticised the government’s gas strategy, arguing it will overshadow progress on clean energy.

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Activist groups not directly involved in Tiwi Island lawsuit must hand over documents to Santos, court rules

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Broad terms of subpoenas a ‘chilling’ precedent that could undermine future climate litigation, legal experts say

A federal court judge has allowed Santos to subpoena paperwork held by three activist groups who were not directly involved in a lawsuit against the oil company.

Justice Natalie Charlesworth ruled on Wednesday afternoon that Santos could pursue financial records and communications between activist groups – Sunrise, Jubilee Australia and the NT Environment Centre – and the Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) in order to determine whether the company will also pursue the campaign organisations for costs for the lawsuit carried out by the EDO on behalf of Tiwi Island traditional owners.

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UK ‘helping Russia pay for its war on Ukraine’ via loophole on refined oil imports

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£2.2bn-worth of oil processed in China, India and Turkey – to whom Russia supplies crude – was imported in 2023, data shows

The UK has been accused of “helping Russia pay for its war on Ukraine” by continuing to import record amounts of refined oil from countries processing Kremlin fossil fuels.

Government data analysed by the environmental news site Desmog shows that imports of refined oil from India, China and Turkey amounted to £2.2bn in 2023, the same record value as the previous year, up from £434.2m in 2021.

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Global heating pushes coral reefs towards worst planet-wide mass bleaching on record

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The percentage of reef areas experiencing bleaching-level heat stress is increasing by about 1% a week, scientists say

Global heating has pushed the world’s coral reefs to a fourth planet-wide mass bleaching event that is on track to be the most extensive on record, US government scientists have confirmed.

Some 54% of ocean waters containing coral reefs have experienced heat stress high enough to cause bleaching, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Reef Watch said.

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Shell says it ‘lobbies for energy transition’ during climate ruling appeal

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Company is fighting Dutch court ruling that says it must emit 45% less CO2 by 2030 than in 2019

Shell has argued that it “lobbies for, not against, the energy transition” on the final day of its appeal against an important climate ruling.

The fossil fuel company is fighting the decision of a Dutch court in 2021 that forces it to pump 45% less planet-heating CO2 into the atmosphere by 2030 than it did in 2019. In court on Friday, Shell argued the ruling is ineffective, onerous and does not fit into the existing legal system.

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Labor’s proposed changes to water trigger laws could have ‘centuries-long consequences’, environment groups say

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Decisions about coal mining and unconventional gas where water resources are affected could be made by states and territories under proposal

Environment groups have criticised a proposed change by the Albanese government to national environmental laws, saying it puts “precious water resources at risk” and could have “centuries-long consequences”.

The proposal would allow states and territories to make decisions about coal mining and unconventional gas where water resources are affected. Currently the federal government has the final say on such projects under the so-called “water trigger”.

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Election of Donald Trump ‘could put world’s climate goals at risk’

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Former UN climate chief warns of global impact of a possible regression in US green policies

Victory for Donald Trump in the US presidential election this year could put the world’s climate goals at risk, a former UN climate chief has warned.

The chances of limiting global heating to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels are already slim, but Trump’s antipathy to climate action would have a major impact on the US, the world’s second biggest emitter of greenhouse gases and biggest oil and gas exporter, according to Patricia Espinosa, who served as the UN’s top official on the climate from 2016 to 2022.

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Surge of new oil and gas activity threatens to wreck Paris climate goals

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World’s fossil-fuel producers on track to nearly quadruple output from newly approved projects by decade’s end, report finds

The world’s fossil-fuel producers are on track to nearly quadruple the amount of extracted oil and gas from newly approved projects by the end of this decade, with the US leading the way in a surge of activity that threatens to blow apart agreed climate goals, a new report has found.

There can be no new oil and gas infrastructure if the planet is to avoid careering past 1.5C (2.7F) of global heating, above pre-industrial times, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has previously stated. Breaching this warming threshold, agreed to by governments in the Paris climate agreement, will see ever worsening effects such as heatwaves, floods, drought and more, scientists have warned.

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Labor’s offshore gas bill labelled ‘a betrayal’ by First Nations activists

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Leaders with responsibilities for sea country on way to Canberra to lobby against legislation

The Albanese government is facing major blowback over changes to its offshore gas bill, which the crossbench and environment groups have labelled “window dressing” that fails to prevent new rules watering down First Nations consultation.

Seeking to clear the decks before Easter, the government is expected to reveal tweaks to its proposed vehicle efficiency standards this week. And on Monday Labor introduced amendments to add safeguards to the offshore gas bill after widespread concerns, including from within it own ranks.

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Queensland farming lobby launches legal challenge against Great Artesian Basin carbon capture trial

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AgForce is seeking a judicial review of a 2022 decision that found the project did not need to be assessed under federal environmental laws

Queensland farming body AgForce has launched legal action against the federal government in a bid to stop liquified carbon dioxide from being pumped into the Great Artesian Basin.

The Carbon Transport and Storage Corporation (CTSCo), a subsidiary of mining giant Glencore, is awaiting state government approval for a pilot scheme to inject Co2 emitted by a coal-fired power station in southern Queensland into underground water aquifers as part of a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project trial.

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Climate activists across Europe block access to North Sea oil infrastructure

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Blockades at facilities in Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, with protests in Scotland and action expected in Denmark

Climate activists in four countries are blocking access to North Sea oil infrastructure as part of a coordinated pan-European civil disobedience protest.

Blockades have been taking place at oil and gas terminals, refineries and ports in Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, in protest at the continued exploitation of North Sea fossil fuel deposits.

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Officials investigating 2.5-mile long oil sheen off southern California coast

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Unified command was formed to look in to the origin of the sheen, which did not seem to be expanding since it was first detected

Authorities in southern California are investigating a 2.5-mile (4km) long oil sheen that emerged off the coast of Huntington Beach on Thursday evening.

The sheen doesn’t appear to be a crude oil spill – it could be the result of natural seepage – and federal and state teams have deployed to the area to determine the source.

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UK quits treaty that lets fossil fuel firms sue governments over climate policies

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Britain joins France, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands in withdrawing from charter it says ‘penalises’ shift to net zero

The UK is pulling out of a treaty that lets fossil fuel firms sue governments over their climate policies.

The government said the UK was withdrawing from the energy charter treaty after efforts to modernise it ended in stalemate.

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Ten of Australia’s top companies lack clear plans to stop using or supporting fossil fuels, report says

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UTS researchers say firms including Coles, Woolworths, Telstra, Rio Tinto and Qantas have no ‘comprehensive, independently verified and fully costed plan’ to reduce emissions

Ten of Australia’s best-known corporations – including Coles, Telstra, Woolworths and Qantas – have no clear plans to stop using or supporting fossil fuels despite having targets to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions, according to a report.

The companies were also failing to report clearly the impact of their businesses on the climate warming caused directly or indirectly from land clearing.

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End fossil-fuel era to address colonial injustices, urges prominent historian

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West should address ‘colonisation of the present’ and not focus on past, argues David Van Reybrouck

Cities in the global north that curb their carbon emissions are doing more to address colonial injustices than those who focus their efforts on taking down statues and changing street names, one of Europe’s leading historians has said.

David Van Reybrouck, the Belgian author of a bestselling history of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a new book on Indonesia’s independence from Dutch rule, has become one of the key drivers of a nascent and often fraught debate about Europe’s colonial legacies. Those who have lauded his work include the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the former UN secretary general Kofi Annan.

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Sweden to drop inquiry into Nord Stream pipeline explosions

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Investigators previously found blasts that damaged undersea pipelines in 2022 were an act of sabotage

Swedish prosecutors have said they will end their investigation into the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in 2022, dodging the question of who destroyed the then new energy link between Russia and Europe shortly after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

After a near 18-month inquiry, the investigators concluded they did not have jurisdiction in the case because Sweden’s citizens and interests had not been harmed.

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