Opinion & Analysis

Like many Australians, I’ve watched with growing frustration as the federal government has had another internal stoush over increasing our climate targets. While the Morrison government has finally agreed to adopt a net zero by 2050 target, a handful of National Party members have effectively barred Australia from taking a stronger 2030 target to the upcoming COP26 climate conference.

Renewable PPAs and renewable self generation are hard enough for commercial and industrial energy users to factor into their organisational management. Energy market participation is also on the table. Energy retailers hold the keys to tariff design that leverages all opportunities. They just need smarter software, says Flux Federation’s Jessica Venning-Bryan.

We are just through the first two weeks of 5-minute settlement. While there has been much anticipation regarding the implementation and the potential for drastic swings in prices, we felt it was an excellent time to take a quick look at the pricing outcomes to see if any immediate trends are emerging.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison appears to be moving towards securing Coalition agreement for a net-zero emissions by 2050. It comes weeks out from the crucial COP26 climate talks in Glasgow, where Australia’s record on global climate action will be heavily scrutinised.

Last year, a day after Halloween, I saw firsthand the result of the most hectic hailstorm I’ve ever endured. Springfield Lakes, Greenbank and a few surrounding Brisbane suburbs got absolutely smoked. It was reported in February that the damage bill had reached at least $805 million. More recent reports have estimated it to be over $1 billion.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison may be warming to a net-zero emissions target by 2050, but Australia is still far from adopting it – largely thanks to resistance from the National Party.

In the third of a series of four blogs, solar pioneer Philip Wolfe lists the world’s largest solar parks. In these articles, a “solar park” is defined as a group of co-located solar power plants.

The past week saw more records broken in the National Electricity Market (NEM), with instantaneous renewable generation hitting a record 59.8% in the afternoon of Sunday 19 September 2021, before breaking 60% for the first time on Monday 20 September 2021. Sunny weather across both days meant rooftop solar made up around half of renewable generation at this peak output, reducing operational demand and suppressing prices during the day.

WePower’s Kaspar Kaarlep offers a closer look at how we must use data to avert the worst of climate change.

Everything you ever wanted to know about the way we will ultimately derive all our power from renewable sources, and how quickly it will be achieved.