Virtue signalling as the nation burns
Greenies who back costly renewables over workable nuclear energy are doing more than anyone to keep coal in business.
Victoria slashes grid outage risk with record demand response uptake
Record customer participation in electricity demand response initiatives has cut the risk of network outages in Victoria and delivered more than half a million dollars to those taking part, new data shows.
Australia’s coal and gas plants are breaking down every three days
Australia’s ageing fleet of coal and gas-fired power plants are becoming increasingly unreliable and inefficient, suffering break downs at least twice a week on average, a new report has found.
Power bill threat as renewable energy spending plummets
Congestion woes in Australia’s power grid threaten to hike household electricity bills and derail the nation’s ability to achieve deeper cuts to carbon emissions following a collapse in renewable energy spending, Queensland government-owned investment giant QIC has warned.
Cane for Matt Kean as MPs flag emissions change
Moderate Liberal MPs have flagged lifting the Coalition’s 2030 emissions reduction target to more than 30 per cent, as Scott Morrison lashed NSW minister Matt Kean over criticisms of his government’s climate policies.
Australia’s climate plan earns no credit
At a time when the United Nations is warning that the world needs to do a lot more to avoid a dramatic rise in global temperatures, it is disappointing that Environment Minister Angus Taylor has travelled to crucial talks in Madrid to say Australia would like to do less.
AEMO’s Zibelman: By 2040, one quarter of Australia’s electricity will come from homes
Australian Energy Market Operator boss Audrey Zibelman says Australian households will provide at least one quarter of the country’s electricity needs by 2040, as part of a “phenomenal” transition that will see the “democratisation” of energy and the closure of most coal plants.
Cooper Energy poised to get its Sole, Downer leaves site
Street Talk has been on gas watch. And in our sights has been Cooper Energy's delayed Sole project in south-eastern Victoria, the state worst hit by the tightness in east coast gas supply.
This is just nuts’: Malcolm Turnbull laments Australia’s climate ideology
Malcolm Turnbull has described climate change ideology in Australia as irrational and said Scott Morrison was not a “coal hugger” but faced a difficult task keeping the Coalition’s conservative faction on side.
Shell completes acquisition of ERM Power
Shell Energy Australia Pty Ltd (Shell) has completed the acquisition of ERM Power Limited (ERM), one of Australia’s leading commercial and industrial electricity retailers.
AEMC told to go back and consult on Cogati, but MLFs still a battle zone
Attempts by the Australian Energy Market Commission to have its controversial transmission costing proposals for wind and solar farms rubber stamped by state and federal ministers have failed, and the market rule maker has been told to go back and consult with stakeholders.
States move to cut new energy deals with Canberra
State and territory governments are lining up to cut new energy deals with federal Energy Minister Angus Taylor in a bid to make the electricity grid more reliable.
NSW goes its own way on energy security
The NSW government has broken away from other states and will set its own Energy Security Target to ensure there is enough reliable generation to avoid blackouts over summer.
Energy giant Alinta is threatening an early closure of one of Australia’s biggest coal-fired power stations, a move that is likely to put it on a collision course with the Federal Government
Speaking on The Business program, Jeff Dimery, the chief executive of Alinta, which owns a portfolio of coal and gas generators, said the low cost of renewables would likely make coal obsolete.
Secretive energy startup backed by Bill Gates achieves solar breakthrough
A secretive startup backed by Bill Gates has achieved a solar breakthrough aimed at saving the planet.
Victoria braces for the worst as an extreme heatwave is set to bring destructive bushfires more severe than 2009’s deadly Black Saturday
Victoria is bracing for a 'very extreme' heatwave tipped to be worse than the fatal Black Saturday fires from a decade ago.
Victoria pushes for urgent overhaul of energy rules as blackouts loom
Victoria will fight to overhaul energy market rules in a bid to prevent summer blackouts amid concerns that ageing power plants are increasingly unreliable during heatwaves.
AEMC rejects renewables push to change marginal loss factors
The Australian Energy Market Commission has rejected a strong push by the wind and solar industry to dump the current method of assessing transmission and network losses, and has instead insisted it will plough on with its own controversial proposals.
SA spot prices for power cheapest in nation but bill relief lags
Prices of electricity in South Australia are tracking lowest in nation on the spot market for the second month in a row — but consumers will have to wait before seeing cuts to their bills.
Developing strategies to guarantee power supply
For both watchers and participants in Australia’s energy markets, summers are as much about what is anticipated as it is about what may actually unfold.
Basslink constraints add to summer grid woes
A directive given to the owner of the Basslink power cable that part of the line's capacity can only be used when wholesale power prices reach extreme levels has added to nervousness about security of supply and prices this summer.
Origin extends contract for South Australian power generator
Origin Energy has renewed a contract with Engie Australia that will extend the operation of a South Australian gas plant by another four years in a move that should reduce risks to security of supply in the state that is increasingly dependent on renewable energy.
Queensland’s CleanCo targets energy ‘duck curve’
The chief executive of Queensland's new state-owned renewable energy company CleanCo said its generation assets will help flatten out the so-called "duck curve" on the energy grid and deliver lower prices when it begins trading this week.
Federal-state plan to keep the lights on in NSW
An upgrade of the Queensland-NSW Interconnector will be underwritten by Scott Morrison and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian in a move to increase com¬petition between generators in the electricity market and drive down wholesale energy prices amid pressure from coal station closures.
AGL signs huge battery storage deal, hails “dawn of battery age”
Australian energy giant AGL has signed a major deal for battery storage that will see four large-scale batteries – each of 50MW/100MWh – developed in NSW by the Australian renewable energy company Maoneng.
Coalition win as ALP backs ‘big-stick’ laws on energy
Energy companies are being warned they must “play by the rules” after Labor capitulated on the Morrison government’s “big stick” laws, in a major win for the Coalition.
Don’t rush transmission overhaul for power grid, energy companies warn
The Australian Energy Market Commission's radical reforms to shake up transmission systems for the electricity grid should not be rushed, big energy companies and renewable operators have warned, saying these could clash with other changes.
NSW energy minister says renewables and storage will replace old coal generators
The NSW energy minister Matt Kean has urged Australia’s investment community to support new energy projects and drive the energy transition in the state, and predicts that renewables, coupled with storage or fast-start gas generators, will replace the state’s ageing coal plants.
Wind energy could supply one third of global power by 2040, says Siemens
Wind energy could supply more than one third of global electric power demand by 2040 and could, in turn, save up to four million lives a year, according to a new study from professional services network KPMG and commissioned by wind turbine manufacturer Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.
Need for speed: How to power a new generation-Kerry Schott
The world is watching as Australia powers ahead with rooftop solar, but the pressure is on to get energy security and reliability
Australia is failing on energy, and it’s burning huge holes in consumer wallets
Australia continues to deliver good news on the growing share of renewables in the main electricity grid, and the resulting fall in electricity sector emissions.
Taskforce assesses risks of AGL’s Liddell plans
Major east coast power users and the nation’s top regulators have been called to high-level meetings over the future of AGL Energy’s Liddell coal station as a joint federal and NSW government probe assesses risks to the electricity grid from its planned exit.
Rooftop solar provides more than half SA power use on mild spring Sunday
The rise of solar has claimed another record in SA, pushing grid demand even lower and providing more than half of power needs. Meanwhile, retailers are on notice to help struggling customers.
Aramco fully restores oil output as it recovers from attacks
Dubai | Saudi Aramco is producing more than 9.9 million barrels a day of crude as it fully recovers from the worst ever attacks on its energy infrastructure.
Do negative spot electricity prices spell end of renewable transition?
Based on recent headlines, you could be forgiven for thinking that we are on the brink of a wholesale electricity price disaster.
Call to fast-track ‘demand response’ to stabilise energy supply
Big energy users have called for new “demand response” rules to be fast-tracked and extended by allowing electricity to be sold into the wholesale market from both businesses and households as the threat of summer blackouts looms on the east coast.
New modelling exposed grid problems that forced solar farms to cut output
New modelling and grid simulations conducted by the Australian Energy Market Operator are apparently at the heart of the decision last week to dramatically curtail the output of five big solar farms in Victoria and New South Wales by 50 per cent.
Industry warns against revived energy laws
Australians will end up paying more for their power bills under the coalition's revived legislation targeting energy giants, the sector fears.
One generator operational at Loy Yang coal fired energy plant
Only one generator out of four is currently operational at Victoria’s largest coal fired energy plant as temperatures warm across the state with the arrival of Spring.
Energy firms have months to prepare for ‘big stick’ laws
Electricity giants will be given six months’ grace to prepare for the Morrison government’s “big stick” energy policy that threatens to split up the assets¬ of major power companies.
Australia to hit 2020 large-scale renewables target ‘ahead of schedule’
Unprecedented investment in large wind and solar power projects has put Australia on track to meet the federal government's 2020 large-scale renewable energy target.
Australia’s old powerlines are holding back the renewable energy boom
Australian wind and solar farms are putting downward pressure on energy prices, and there are hundreds of new renewable facilities set to come online. But that green energy is stretching the country's outdated network of transmission lines.
Drought deepens as ‘very dry winter’ combines with record heat
Drought-hit regions of southern and eastern Australia got little if any relief during winter, with barely half the normal rainfall and the country still posting its warmest start to any year for daytime temperatures.
Basslink outage adds to strain on Victorian supply
A failure of the Basslink power cable that links Tasmania to the mainland power grid is likely to last until mid-October, increasing pressure on security of electricity supply in Victoria in the run-up to summer just as two major generating units are also out of action.
Solar-induced negative power prices offset by spikes
The increasing regularity with which wholesale power prices are sinking below $0 during sunny and windy days is being more than cancelled out by more frequent high prices, defying expectations of a softening in levels overall.
Finally, Australia is about to have a plan to de-carbonise the grid
It was an odd thing for the two national newspapers to focus on. Both The Australian and The Australian Financial Review decided that the most important thing to come out of the Australian Energy Market Operator’s scenario planning for the future grid released on Friday was the assumed absence of a carbon price.
UK privately appeals to senior Australian ministers for climate action
The British government has privately appealed to senior Coalition ministers – including Angus Taylor and Marise Payne – to develop a more “ambitious” climate policy, amid growing concern Australia is not doing enough to cut emissions.
Senex ramps up gas spend as it turns to profit
Emerging east coast gas producer Senex Energy has flagged a significant increase in investment this coming year to lift supplies for the tight east coast market, laying the foundations for what it expects to be a major jump in output over the next two years.
AGL, EnergyAustralia vie for $40m pumped hydro funding
AGL Energy and EnergyAustralia have muscled in on an opportunity to secure federal government funding to support pumped hydro storage projects in South Australia.
The new nuclear option: small, safe and cheap
The next generation of nuclear reactors – the ones that could finally overcome Australia's resistance to power by fission – are so small they will abide by road regulations.