Australia is on the cusp of a once-in-a-generation transformation, as our energy systems shift to clean, renewable forms of power. First Nations peoples, the original custodians of this land, must be central to – and benefit from – this transition.
Australia is on track to reach the Albanese government’s 43% emissions reduction target by 2030, according to the most recent analysis by the Climate Change department.
The petroleum-laden dust has settled on this year’s United Nations climate summit, COP29, held over the past fortnight in Baku, Azerbaijan. Climate scientists, leaders, lobbyists and delegates are heading for home.
Solcast, a DNV company, reports that the upcoming Australian summer is likely to see cloudier than usual conditions, potentially reducing solar generation across key regions, especially along the east coast.
Singapore could import large quantities of low-cost solar power from neighbouring countries using undersea cables, with the indicative cost being competitive with gas generation. Unlimited world-class pumped hydro energy storage is available in neighbouring countries in the range 50-5000 GWh to support very large scale transmission.
Australia is in the middle of an historic transition away from fossil fuels to renewable energy and this transition is not without challenges. Investment in new, large-scale renewable energy capacity has been slowed by grid bottlenecks, slow planning approvals, rising costs, and a lack of alignment between energy supply and demand. This has many experts fearing Australia will not meet its ambitious 2030 climate targets.
If you talk to any politician or even some sustainability experts, the one thing most of them will point to as we transition our electric vehicles on the road to net zero is a need to update the grid.
Solar and wind have won the global energy race. They accounted for 80% of new global power capacity installed in 2023. In Australia, 99% of new capacity is wind or solar.
Battery electric vehicle sales in Australia have flattened in recent months. The latest data reveal a sharp 27.2% year-on-year decline (overall new vehicle sales were down 9.7%) in September. Tesla Model Y and Model 3 cars had an even steeper drop of nearly 50%.
Critics of renewable energy projects are quick to argue that building solar and wind farms on productive farming and grazing land has a deleterious effect on Australia’s agricultural production.
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