Policy

Although the International Energy Agency’s latest renewables report forecasts impressive solar growth there is still a nagging feeling it has produced conservative estimates and the emphasis on sharing costs with grid operators is predictable.

Warringah MP and defeater of Tony Abbott Zali Steggall is set to put a Climate Change Bill on the floor of parliament in early 2020 resembling the United Kingdom’s Climate Change Act. Such a bill from a cross-bench Independent might be the Parliamentary angle required for much-needed energy policy.

Technology Metals Australia has received a promising grant from the Australian Government for the development of its Gabanintha Vanadium Project. It is a small but sure sign of Vanadium’s strategic importance to the Australian economy when paired with renewable energy sources such as solar and wind.

In a single month Banyule City Council in the north-eastern suburbs of Melbourne has rattled off a Climate Action Package for net-zero emissions by 2028, declared a climate emergency and joined other local governments in a Solar Savers program.

Not just a haven for shoals, Shoalhaven is rapidly becoming a haven for solar PV too as the region pushes ahead to its renewable energy goals with a large rooftop installation on the Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre.

The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) has released a discussion paper toward a blueprint for the coordination of generation and transmission investment. The draft proposal seeks to overhaul wholesale pricing and transmission access toward lowering electricity costs and the ever-increasing risks inherent in getting new renewable energy generation into the network.

Public policy think-tank Grattan Institute has released a new report on energy policy, or lack thereof. The report, entitled Power Play: How governments can better direct Australia’s electricity market, makes a comprehensive overview of the current state of affairs and makes concerted recommendations.

Lord Howe Island is set to finally receive a solution to its energy problems with the installation of a solar + battery storage system that will reduce its reliance on diesel fuel.

Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has sharply criticised the Liberal Party for its inability to provide a coherent national energy policy. Turnbull questioned the conservative integrity of his old party on its 75th anniversary as the federal policy vacuum continues to have adverse effects on the market and renewable investment. 

Coffs Harbour City Council has begun a rapid uptake of solar PV as it looks to meet its target of 100% renewable energy by 2030.