The figure adds fuel to the growing political dispute over the pace and form of Australia’s energy transition
The federal government says it would cost as much as $387bn to replace Australia’s retiring coal-fired power stations with the form of nuclear power proposed by the Coalition.
The figure, produced by the energy department, is the projected cost of replacing all of the output from closing coal-fired plants with small modular reactors.
Continue reading...Energy dynamics report finds clean energy is displacing fossil fuels and sending carbon emissions from the sector to new lows
Australia’s record levels of renewable energy helped extend the slide in wholesale power prices in the first three months of 2023, displacing fossil fuels and sending carbon emissions from the sector to new lows for the first quarter.
The latest energy dynamics report by the Australian Energy Market Operator (Aemo) showed wholesale spot prices in the national electricity market (NEM) averaged $83/MWh, down more than a 10th from the December quarter and two-thirds lower than the record average $264/MWh in the June quarter last year.
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Ed Husic says board appointments alone won’t guarantee RBA diversity
The ministry for industry, Ed Husic, says he believes new appointments to the RBA board alone isn’t enough to bring diversity to the central bank – he says there need to be “deeper structures” put in place.
As a government, I can give you this assurance. We do like to take into account people’s views from different vantage points. I do think it is important that where decisions have an impact – not just in terms of investors or industry but the people that work in them or the broader community – I think it’s a healthier decision …
Some people will fix on ‘well, someone should have a seat at the board’ for that to occur and I understand why they’ll make those arguments. I’m not necessarily convinced that that specifically guarantees that will occur, just having one person on the board. There need to be a lot deeper structures for people to have that sense that they’ve had a say and that they can have an ability to influence and inform decision making.
Continue reading...Chris Bowen is expected to introduce an EV and vehicle fuel efficiency standards policy next week
Australia’s long-awaited national electric vehicle strategy is expected to be released next week, finally detailing the introduction of pollution standards that should accelerate the uptake of electric cars.
Industry sources say the federal climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, will release the strategy ahead of an event in western Sydney on Wednesday.
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Continue reading...Energy regulators issue draft default market offer, which set cap for this year’s increases
Power bills for households in three states will rise as much as 23.7% from 1 July if the Australian Energy Regulator’s draft determination, announced on Wednesday, is confirmed. Prices in Victoria may rise by almost a third.
The AER chair, Clare Savage, said the increases were “significant” but they could have been as much as 40% to 50% without the federal government’s intervention in December to cap domestic gas and black coal prices.
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Continue reading...Plan that is key to Albanese government’s 2030 target will focus on emissions intensity to encourage cleaner practices rather than cutting production
Australia’s big polluting sites will have to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 5% a year but will face no limits on the use of carbon offsets under the Albanese government’s plan to deal with industrial emitters.
The climate change minister, Chris Bowen, on Tuesday released the government’s plan to revamp the safeguard mechanism, a Coalition policy that was promised to limit emissions from more than 200 industrial facilities, but in practice has failed.
Continue reading...South Australian SES revises dates for expected peak flows with Renmark and Berri expected to peak today; nurses at two major private hospitals in Sydney to walk off the job at 1pm
Private hospitals nurses to walk off the job for first time in decades
Staying in NSW, nurses at two major private Sydney hospitals will walk off the job later today.
The Australian market regulator and the cap price that people pay for electricity will make their announcement in February about what bills people will pay for next year. And we expect that the move will feed directly through to that and see downward pressure of up to $243 on electricity bills of what it was previously going to be.
How much of a philosophical jump was it for you as a Liberal, to intervene in the market in this way and cap the prices?
Well, it wasn’t a jump at all to stand by people following the illegal war in Ukraine, which is pushing up electricity bills. The government is there to protect the people – not the other way around.
And that’s exactly what we did. We looked at a range of measures to support people to deal with these high electricity prices. And this is the one that the commonwealth government asked us to do and, obviously, our No 1 priority is standing by the people of New South Wales using our balance sheet to support families and businesses. And that’s exactly what we’re doing.
Continue reading...Energy minister Chris Bowen says the batteries – shared between four states – will increase capacity tenfold to help stabilise the grid
Eight large batteries to store renewable energy will be built around Australia to support the grid and help keep energy prices down, the federal government has said.
The government-owned Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) would provide $176m to the projects, the energy minister, Chris Bowen, announced on Saturday.
Continue reading...Labor revokes Abbott government move which allowed energy from burning wood waste to be counted with solar and wind
Electricity generated by burning native forest wood waste will no longer be allowed to be classified as renewable energy under a regulatory change adopted by the Albanese government.
The decision, which Labor had promised to consider after it was recommended by a Senate committee in September, reverses a 2015 Abbott government move which allowed burning native forest timber to be counted alongside solar and wind energy towards the national renewable energy target.
Continue reading...Senior politicians from both major parties to travel to Vanuatu, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and Palau this week. This blog is now closed
The Bureau of Meteorology expects scattered showers expected over South Australia.
Meanwhile the heatwave that has settled across northern Australia is expected to ease.
Continue reading...State’s energy minister, Matt Kean, says ‘It’s not about royalties, it’s all about consumers’, putting pressure on Queensland counterpart
New South Wales is prepared to agree to a price cap on coal without compensation to provide energy price relief to consumers and business, adding pressure on Queensland to follow suit.
Meanwhile, a meeting of energy ministers in Brisbane on Thursday has agreed, as expected, to move ahead with a so-called capacity investment scheme to help accelerate the take up of new storage in the electricity grid.
Continue reading...Climate change minister tells parliament official projection of 40% cut does not factor in all Labor’s policy commitments
Australia’s climate change minister, Chris Bowen, has declared the country on track to reach a 40% cut in climate pollution by 2030 – just short of the national target of 43% – but the government has been told a “big upward shift in momentum” is needed to tackle the problem.
Giving the country’s first climate statement to parliament, which is now required annually under legislation passed earlier this year, Bowen said the official projection of a 40% cut did not factor in all Labor’s policy commitments, and that those measures would “lift our result to at least 43%”.
The statement did not shed light on what the government would do to make deeper cuts in line with its goal of limiting global heating to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, an expectation raised by a UN-backed report if the Great Barrier Reef is to avoid being nominated as a world heritage site “in danger”. It also did not mention the country’s vast coal and gas export industries.
It is expected Labor will adopt a suite of reforms to address an anticipated 56% increase in electricity prices
The Albanese government could struggle to provide comprehensive energy price relief, unless the governments of New South Wales and Queensland cooperate with a plan to temporarily cap the wholesale price of coal.
The energy minister, Chris Bowen, updated cabinet on Monday on the components of Labor’s long-telegraphed regulatory intervention in the energy sector.
Continue reading...The SES has said the Lachlan River is rising faster than originally forecast. Follow all today’s news
Some issues ‘we have raised will be solved overnight’: Chalmers
Albanese has said there are no preconditions ahead of the meeting with Xi but Karvelas is pressing Chalmers on what could be on the table. He’s staying pretty tight-lipped but here are some of his answers.
We’ve made it really clear for some time … that these trade sanctions are not in Australia’s interests, and we want to see them lifted.
I don’t think anybody pretends some of the issues China has raised, certainly some we have raised will be solved overnight, but again we give ourselves a much better chance where there is engagement and dialogue.
Australia’s made its views clear over a long period of time when it comes to the detention of these two people.
What’s Australia’s ambition here?
We seek a more stable relationship with China.
We will speak up for our national interest where necessary, but we believe engagement is important to give ourselves the chance to work through some of these issues if we’re talking to each other.
Continue reading...Tony Burke is also being quite conciliatory about David Pocock’s concerns about the bill.
Asked by Patricia Karvelas if he is prepared to make more amendments to the IR bill, Tony Burke says that is standard after a senate inquiry process.
I suspect there’ll be more to come.
Continue reading...Government has also not ruled out using threat of export limits to guarantee more domestic supply, Jim Chalmers says
The Albanese government will toughen gas market regulation and intends to make the industry code of conduct mandatory, with the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, also not ruling out export limits or cash handouts as soaring bills put pressure on household budgets.
On Sunday, Chalmers signalled a review, announced in the budget and being conducted by the competition regulator, would likely include mandatory price regulation and a requirement for “meaningful offers” to domestic consumers.
Continue reading...Teal independents to attend national EV summit today
Many of the newly elected independents who campaigned on a platform of stronger climate action are set today’s electric vehicle summit in Canberra.
Our support will be delivered through UN agencies to provide food, health and nutrition services, access to safe water and essential support for those at risk, including women and children.
Australia’s continued assistance to Sri Lanka supports our mutual interest in a secure and resilient Indian Ocean and reinforces our 75 year-strong relationship built on cooperation and community connection.
Continue reading...Announcement at national electric vehicle summit comes as climate change minister seeks input on national EV strategy
An Australian bank will stop offering loans for new fossil fuel cars from 2025 in a step it says will encourage more people to buy electric vehicles.
The customer-owned Bank Australia will announce the self-imposed ban at a national EV summit in Canberra on Friday, arguing it is a responsible step to ensure its lending practices did not “lock our customers into higher carbon emissions and increasingly expensive running costs”.
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Continue reading...The Pharmacy Guild has pushed for the drugs to be made available without a prescription at community pharmacies due to national GP shortages. This blog is now closed
Peter Dutton pressed on voice to parliament
Opposition leader Peter Dutton appeared on ABC’s 7.30 last night and it is worth revisiting for the exchange with host Sarah Ferguson about whether he will commit his party to supporting the voice to parliament.
SARAH FERGUSON: Let me move back into the domestic realm. At the start of parliament, you participated in the smoking ceremony, you allowed your face to be painted and then in your speech you quoted Noel Pearson and seemed to endorse Pearson’s call for constitutional recognition. What would prevent you now from taking the next step and backing the referendum on the voice?
PETER DUTTON: Well, I quoted Noel Pearson for whom I have a great deal of respect, and you can go back and look at the quote and there are many elements to that because there were several paragraphs that I quoted him on.
If we could get that to 60 per cent, then already you would go a long way to addressing part of the supply shortage of teachers.
Continue reading...Federal, state and territory ministers are set to make emissions reduction a priority for the national electricity market
Australia’s main electricity market will prioritise cutting emissions as part of its objectives for the first time since its creation a quarter of a century ago, a shift that could set up conditions for a carbon price, experts said.
Federal, state and territory energy ministers are scheduled to meet in Canberra on Thursday for a dinner before holding formal talks on Friday. It will be the first gathering since the national electricity market (NEM) was suspended in June after the market operator had to resort to whiteboards and spreadsheets to order generators online.
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