Queensland’s higher coal royalties has had little impact on profits, new data shows

The state’s treasury does not expect the taxes to make a significant impact on investment decisions

The Queensland government’s imposition of higher royalties for coal producers and China’s ban on imports from Australia are having little impact on super profits, despite a campaign against the taxes by the industry.

The state’s coal industry is a clear winner from the global energy shock as the world looks for new supplies, according to data released by the Queensland Treasury.

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New battery technology could be a ‘game changer’ for regional Australian communities

The CEO of Swiss company Energy Vault says its gravity storage technology can be built anywhere you can build a 20-storey building

The head of a Swiss energy company which has been contracted to build a solar storage battery in Victoria says its technology will be a “game changer” for rural communities because it can be built anywhere – provided the locals don’t mind having a structure that is as tall as a 20-storey building.

Energy Vault has pioneered a gravity energy storage system that uses surplus energy to raise 35-tonne blocks, made out of recycled materials, to the top of the tall battery structure. Energy is released by lowering those blocks.

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Australia’s ‘carbon capital’ charts a course away from fossil fuels and a boom-bust cycle

Queensland’s Gladstone council is pinning its hopes on a 10-year energy transition plan, amid concerns for its future in a net zero world

The 6.30am twin-engine service from Brisbane to Gladstone on Monday morning is chock full of blokes in hi-vis and heavy boots.

But this week federal public servants, journalists, renewable energy advocates and the Queensland energy minister joined the usual crowd of Fifo workers descending on the town.

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India’s energy conundrum: committed to renewables but still expanding coal

Critics says India’s plans to increase coal production to 1bn tonnes a year are environmentally devastating and unnecessary

Three days before India’s environment minister boarded a flight to Egypt for this year’s UN climate summit, Cop27, the country’s finance minister was busy with a new announcement.

“India needs greater investment in coal production,” said Nirmala Sitharaman at the Delhi launch of India’s biggest ever coalmine auction, where 141 new sites for coalmines will be sold off to the highest bidder.

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Increasing demand for oil and fuel threatens African nations’ economies, analysis finds

Carbon Tracker thinktank says investors in fossil fuels on the continent would be left with stranded assets

Expanding oil and gas exports would threaten the economic stability of many African countries, new analysis has found, despite soaring fossil fuel prices.

Demand for fossil fuels is likely to fall sharply in the medium term, according to a report published on Monday by the Carbon Tracker thinktank. That makes relying on gas exports to fuel economic growth a short-term, risky strategy, while boosting solar power would prove a better long-term bet, the analysis found.

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PM’s meeting with Chinese president confirmed – as it happened

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Andrews rules out deal with the Greens and independents in event of minority government

Dan Andrews was also asked what would happen if Labor finds itself in a minority government situation – will it do a deal with the Greens?

No deal will be offered and no deal will be done.

And independents – no deals with independents?

No deal will be offered and no deal will be done.

So if you’re in a minority situation and you hold more seats than the Liberal party, what happens? You go back to another election?

Well, I think what the best thing to do, and what happens, Michael, is we work hard for the next 13 days, we work hard to put a positive and optimistic plan out there, and we’ll see what the verdict of Victorian voters is. I’m arguing, I’m urging people to vote for a strong, stable majority Labor government, to vote for your local Labor candidate.

The new SEC – government-owned, not private for-profit, but government-owned electricity, so owned by every single Victorian – creates nearly 60,000 jobs – 6,000 of those will be apprentices. It will be 100% renewable electricity. These companies can’t be relied upon to replace themselves. They’ll just put another profit machine in place. We need to make sure that we’re looking after pensioners, we’re looking after families and, indeed, businesses. And without electricity, there is no economy, so we have to replace them. And we choose to replace them with a public option – a government-owned option. An option that’s owned by every single Victorian.

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Ukraine uses Cop27 to highlight environmental cost of Russia’s war

Delegation at climate summit tell of destruction of protected areas and carbon toll of invasion and rebuilding

Ukraine has used the Cop27 climate talks to make the case that Russia’s invasion is causing an environmental as well as humanitarian catastrophe, with fossil fuels a key catalyst of the country’s destruction.

Ukraine has dispatched two dozen officials to the summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, to spell out the links between the war launched by Russia in February, the soaring cost of energy due to Russia’s status as a key gas supplier, and the planet-heating emissions expelled by the offensive.

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Russian oligarchs and companies under sanctions are among lobbyists at Cop27

The heavy presence of lobbyists from Moscow suggests Russia is using the climate talks to drum up business

Russian oligarchs and executives from multiple companies under international sanctions are among the lobbyists currently attending Cop27 in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Among those at the pivotal climate talks are the billionaire and former aluminium magnate Oleg Deripaska, who is under UK sanctions, and the billionaire Andrey Melnichenko, the former head of the Russian fertiliser company the EuroChem group, who has been targeted with individual sanctions by the European Union which he disputed, calling them “absurd and nonsensical”.

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Solar farm owner Toucan Energy enters administration amid Thurrock scandal

Authority lent total of £655m over four years to owner of 53 solar parks across Britain

One of the country’s largest solar farm owners has entered administration amid the fallout from a scandal that forced an Essex council leader to resign.

Administrators at Interpath Advisory have been appointed to Toucan Energy Holdings, which owns a portfolio of 53 solar parks with a combined capacity of 513 megawatts across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

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Coal projects in Great Barrier Reef catchments approved without environmental impact statements

Environmental groups call on Queensland government to end exemptions, with six mining ventures already given green light

At least eight coalmining projects in Great Barrier Reef catchments and floodplains have been exempted from requiring environmental impact statements by the Queensland government, with six already gaining state environmental approval.

A coalition of environmental groups that includes the Australian Conservation Foundation, Birdlife and the Queensland Conservation Council is now lobbying the Palaszczuk government to end such exemptions.

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Covid cases surge nationally as ‘fourth wave’ hits – as it happened

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Albanese on Xi Jinping: ‘we will no doubt be at the same meetings’

Will Anthony Albanese meet with China’s president Xi Jinping in the coming week? He’s staying mum.

What I want to see with the relationship with China is cooperation where we can, but we of course will maintain our Australian values where we must. So dialogue is always good, a meeting is not locked in at this point in time. But we will no doubt be at the same meetings. The East Asia summit, the G20, and Apec is going to be a busy time in international diplomacy.

Now this act is just disgusting, targeting women who have had a pregnancy termination is about as cowardly as you can get.

I just want to say to those women this morning, we hear you, we are with you, and we love you. If you need help, please reach out and we are absolutely determined to target the criminals who have done this disgusting act.

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Australia news live: Medibank hacker demands ‘US$1 per customer’ ransom; ‘rotten egg gas’ problem in navy patrol boats

Defence officials say there is an issue with hydrogen sulphide in the vessels’ waste systems. Follow the day’s news live

Coalition’s staff cap has fuelled lack of payment integrity, Shorten says

Bill Shorten goes on to criticise the NDIS staff cap implemented by the Coalition government:

When there were 180,000 participants in the scheme, the staff numbers were around 3,500 to 4,000. And the government of the day said, ‘OK, no more staff.’

Now the scheme has half a million people-plus, and what’s happened is that we’ve brought in contractors or labour hire or partners in the community and the scheme hasn’t been well, in my opinion, supervised and well loved.

I don’t blame someone for seeking to get support for the child. What does make me wonder is the state school systems providing the support for kids with developmental and learning delays? Are they doing enough or not? How can you force their hand to do it so that these people aren’t going on the NDIS?

Originally, when the NDIS was created, it was to be a 50/50 split, at the moment the federal government is paying 64% to 66% of the scheme and states are paying in the mid 30s.

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France to require all large car parks to be covered by solar panels

Legislation approved by Senate will apply to existing and new car parks with space for at least 80 vehicles

All large car parks in France will be covered by solar panels under new legislation approved as part of president Emmanuel Macron’s renewable energy drive.

Legislation approved by the French Senate this week requires existing and new car parks with space for at least 80 vehicles to be covered by solar panels.

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Cop27: ending war in Ukraine necessary to tackle climate crisis, Zelenskiy says

Ukrainian president says Russia’s invasion has forced dozens of countries to resume coal-fired power to alleviate energy costs

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has told world leaders they will not be able to tackle the climate crisis unless Russia’s invasion of his country ends.

“There can be no effective climate policy without the peace,” he said in a video address at the Cop27 UN climate summit in Egypt on Tuesday. “The Russian war has brought about an energy crisis that has forced dozens of countries to resume coal-fired power generation in order to lower energy prices for their people, to lower prices that are shockingly rising due to deliberate Russian actions.”

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Germany keen to discuss natural gas pact with UK amid supply risk

Officials interested in deal that would allow two countries to bail each other out in event of shortages

Germany is keen to talk to Britain about a solidarity pact that would allow Europe’s largest consumers of natural gas to bail each other out if an extreme cold snap were to create shortages this winter, German officials have said.

Such an agreement could be mutually beneficial for both London and Berlin, the German civil servant in charge of rationing in the case of a supply crisis told the Guardian in an interview.

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One thousand residents urged to evacuate as central west braces for flood peak – as it happened

Pregnant woman and midwife among 10 rescues in NSW town of Forbes. This blog is now closed

Victorian Labor lead narrows in polls in lead-up to state election

The Victorian election race appears to be tightening three weeks out from polling day, with Labor in danger of slipping in to minority government, AAP reports.

The AMA analysed the documentation these media reports relied on and, like the department, found nothing – not a skerrick of evidence – to support the claims made in headlines splashed across some news organisations.

The AMA has acknowledged consistently that while some fraud does occur, the vast majority of doctors are doing the right thing. And we have seen the mental toll these reports have taken on Australia’s doctors.

The minister has again highlighted the impact of years of cuts and neglect of Medicare, and, while this latest review may identify potential savings that could be made, what Medicare really needs is genuine reform and an injection of new funds.

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Thousands left without natural gas in Lithgow and Bathurst amid cold snap

Recent flooding is believed to have caused the pipeline outage in central-west NSW and is hampering repair

It could take weeks to completely fix a pipeline outage that has left more than 20,000 New South Wales residents without natural gas during an unseasonal cold snap, with recent flooding believed to have caused the outage as well as hampering its repair.

Residents in the central-west towns of Bathurst, Lithgow and Wallerawang woke up on Thursday to find their homes without natural gas, a day after snow fell in the region and a temperature of 1C was recorded in Lithgow. The towns of Portland and Oberon are also affected.

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Tanya Plibersek to reassess 18 proposed oil and gas projects to consider their climate change impact

Queensland environment group had asked federal minister to revisit decisions made going back to 2011

Federal environment officials have agreed to look again at 18 proposed new coal and gas projects after a Queensland environment group submitted requests to have the effects of climate change considered.

None of the 18 projects has been approved under the country’s environment law, but have been through a process where the environment minister determines the nature and scale of their likely impacts.

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Australia news live: Ed Husic says government must intervene in gas market; Pocock backs fossil fuels super profits tax

Industry minister says gas companies are ‘not picking up the signals’. Follow all the day’s news live

Gas supply not a problem, ‘glut of greed is’, industry minister says

Husic:

This is not a shortage of supply problem; this is a glut of greed problem, that has to be basically short-circuited and common sense prevail.

The pricing mechanism is the one that I think needs to be seriously examined.

The LNG exporters are offering gas to the domestic market at prices they couldn’t reasonably expect on the international market.

We have the ACCC looking at that [code of conduct] and that code of conduct is to help better guide the way in which these contracts get negotiated … in terms of the other areas, we want to work through that internally.

If you look at what the treasurer has said over the last few days, he is examining those type of options and again that will be in the mix of things he thinks through.

I think the bigger focus long-term is the price mechanism.

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Labour in bid to avert Northern Ireland power cuts as result of Brexit legislation

Exclusive: Peter Hain to table amendment in House of Lords to protect single energy market

A Labour peer is launching a bid to avert a fresh energy crisis with potential power cuts and drastic electricity price rises in Northern Ireland as a result of proposed Brexit legislation.

The former Northern Ireland secretary Peter Hain will table an amendment to the Northern Ireland protocol bill in the House of Lords on Wednesday to protect the so-called single energy market (SEM), which allows power to be traded with the island of Ireland as one economic unit.

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