2021 - April 23rd United States President Joe Biden launches global climate summit by pledging to cut US emissions in half by 2030

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-23/joe-biden-us-to-cut-emissions-by-half-by-2030/100089456

US President Joe Biden has pledged to slash US greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030, amid an American-brokered Earth Day summit featuring leaders from 40 countries across the globe.

The United States, the world's second-leading emitter after China, seeks to reclaim global leadership in the fight against global warming after former president Donald Trump diminished US credibility in this policy area throughout his term. 

"This is the decade we must make decisions that will avoid the worst consequences of the climate crisis," Mr Biden said at the White House.

The IPCC, the UN's climate science panel, has calculated the global 2030 and 2050 emissions reduction targets need to give the world a "high likelihood" of keeping the Earth from warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by 2100. 

If temperatures rise between 1.5C and 2C of warming, the IPCC predicts that coral reefs will decline from 70-90 per cent to more than 99 per cent.

Sea level rise will displace a further 10 million people by the end of the century at 2C compared with 1.5C, and animal extinctions — as well as heat related mortality in people — will be far greater at 2C.

2021 - 12th April: Government accused of pressuring experts who questioned its gas-fired recovery plan

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-12/four-corners-gas-plan-pressured-experts/100055730

The government has been accused of pressuring experts who questioned its gas-fired recovery plan, Four Corners can reveal.

In July last year, Energy Minister Angus Taylor was given an advance copy of a report to be published by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), which did not support the government's position on gas.

AEMO manages and maintains the country's electricity and gas systems.

Four Corners understands the minister called then-chief executive of AEMO, Audrey Zibelman, and in a heated conversation, pressured her to change the report's conclusions, which were unfavourable to gas.

AEMO refused to do so.

Ms Zibelman, who left AEMO in December last year, could not be reached for comment.

The minister did not deny the conversation took place but his office told Four Corners "it [rejects] the premise there was undue pressure being exerted on AEMO" and that it was seeking to understand the modelling used by AEMO, which it saw as being at odds with other market modelling.

Despite international pressure to reduce the use of fossil fuels, the federal government has been pushing ahead with its controversial plan to increase the amount of gas in Australia's energy system.

It's not the only instance where the government has been unhappy with the views expressed by the agencies tasked with regulating and overseeing the energy system.

Four Corners has learned the government became so frustrated by the refusal of the head of the Energy Security Board (ESB), Kerry Schott, to support its position on gas that the Energy Minister's departmental secretary called Ms Schott and urged her to resign.

Ms Schott says the conversation was private but conceded she is always under pressure.

Mr Taylor denies his department chief asked her to resign.

The ESB is tasked with ensuring the security and stability of the electricity grid into the future and works with state and federal governments.

Justification for gas recovery plan disputed

The centrepiece of the government's gas-fired recovery plan is a proposal to build a new gas-fired power plant in NSW and underwrite new gas pipelines.

In NSW, four out of the five coal-fired power stations are set to close in the next 15 years, including the Liddell power station in the Hunter Valley.  

The Liddell power station in the Hunter Valley is one of the major NSW power plants set to close.

The federal government is convinced gas is the best way to replace the loss of electricity those closures would cause and is seeking to impose a solution that NSW says it doesn't need — a new gas-fired power station, funded by the taxpayer if necessary.

One of the government's justifications for this new power plant is that when the Liddell power station closes, the market will face a shortfall of 1,000 megawatts of electricity which will need to be sourced elsewhere.

This is disputed by key energy bodies, the ESB and AEMO.

AEMO says the shortfall will only be 154MW.

NSW Energy Minister Matt Kean also disputes the figure, saying "I'd like to see where they got their 1,000MW of gas that was needed.'"

Mr Taylor told Four Corners that AEMO has ignored the potential impact on future electricity prices, saying its figure only relates to how much electricity is needed to make the system reliable.

He says extra gas-fired electricity in the system is needed to make that energy more affordable.

"There's two things we have to worry about here with losing a major piece of capacity … We know from our own modelling, if there's not a significant piece of capacity replacing the loss [of Liddell] then there'll be upward pressure on prices."

Electricity generation is primarily a state responsibility and although they all need gas to a certain extent now, the states are looking at how they can move beyond gas as fast as possible.

The NSW Coalition government's energy response has been to aggressively fast-track renewables. 

"Those people defending old technologies are the equivalent of defending Blockbuster in a Netflix world," Mr Kean said.

Mr Kean's solution is an ambitious plan to encourage private investment in batteries and renewables.

"Let's get the facts on the table. Using gas to create electricity is a really expensive way to do it. If you're interested in driving down electricity prices, then you'd be mad to use gas," Mr Kean told Four Corners.

"New South Wales energy policy is determined by engineers, experts and economists, not ideologues."

New South Wales is not the only state looking to leapfrog the federal government's vision of a gas-fired recovery.

The Liberal state government in South Australia is also betting the future on batteries and says it will be 100 per cent net renewable by 2030.

Accusations government task force dominated by gas interests

In April 2020, a task force was created to ensure the manufacturing sector's recovery from the pandemic.    

The head of this task force was Andrew Liveris, a former chief executive of one of the world's largest gas users, Dow Chemicals, and a current director of one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, Saudi Aramco.

Joining Mr Liveris on the manufacturing task force were seven men — all manufacturing experts and all with diverse energy interests.

A majority also had significant stakes in the gas sector, either through their business or member base.

Last May, the manufacturing task force submitted its final report to the COVID commission.

The report has never been made public, but Four Corners has seen it.

It recommends the acceleration of new gas field developments and the use of taxpayer funds to underwrite new gas infrastructure, including pipelines.

Energy finance analyst Bruce Robertson, from the pro-renewables think tank IEEFA, believes the make-up of the task force determined the outcome.

"If I made it up of carpenters, I'm sure they would have said, 'House-led recovery looks pretty good. Why don't we build a whole lot of houses and employ a whole lot of tradies?'  If you give the COVID commission to a whole lot of gas executives, that's the answer you're going to get."  

When contacted, task force members told Four Corners "where [any conflicts of interest] occurred [they] removed themselves from those parts of the discussion".

In September, Prime Minister Scott Morrison declared the pursuit of a gas-fired recovery, embracing many of the task force's recommendations and a promise to deliver cheaper gas.

"When Andrew Liveris sat down with me at Kirribilli some time go, and working with him through the COVID commission, said, 'You want to change manufacturing in this country? You've got to do it with gas. You've got to do it with gas.' And Angus [Taylor] has taken up that challenge and this is what we're talking about today," Mr Morrison said at the time.

Within the task force, there was some concern about its fixation with gas.

Paul Bastian, then-secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union, wrote to the Prime Minister saying the union did not believe the federal government should underwrite the price of gas and that investment in gas could result in so-called stranded assets.

But Mr Liveris believes the federal government is right to push for a gas-fired power plant in NSW. 

"I think they're going to have a whole lot of unhappy voters here in Sydney when that power plant gets built on just renewables … This large battery idea is going to be a very expensive power price," he told Four Corners.  

Government gas policy at odds with global momentum

In the six months since the federal government announced a gas-fired recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, global momentum has moved towards discouraging a greater use of the fossil fuel.

In March, the European Union's parliament voted in favour of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism which would impose a tariff on products being sold into the EU according to the amount of carbon involved in making them.

Gas could be one of the sources of carbon pollution that will attract this tariff.

Also in March, the newly formed US Biden administration announced it would consider a carbon adjustment fee which would likewise apply to incoming goods.

Both pledged to produce net zero emissions by 2050.

This means Australian goods such as steel and chemicals could face an effective carbon tax.

The Australian government has no net zero emissions target and has promised to increase the amount of gas in the electricity and manufacturing sectors, saying it will boost jobs.

Mr Liveris said the government should commit to a 2050 target.

"I think we should stop beating around the bush. I mean, we should declare. I'm a big fan of that," he said.

"There's many things that this current government's doing that I'm agreeing with, but we should put our target out there now."

Zoe Whitton, an executive director at Pollination who advises multinational investors on climate change and energy transition, said investors were worried about trade sanctions which might apply to Australian goods produced using fossil fuels.

"If the Australian economy is more emissions-intensive … we suspect … all of the manufacturers or exporters in that economy will become more vulnerable to a price on the border of the EU and potentially on other regions like China and the US, eventually, than they would otherwise be," she said.

"So if you increase the emissions intensity of the Australian system by putting gas-fired power instead of renewable energy, then you might find yourself bearing that cost across all of your investments."

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will host the upcoming G7 meeting in June and is said to have signalled a strong desire to focus on carbon tariffs. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has been invited to attend as a special guest.

Australia risks being left behind

For more than a decade, the debate around climate goals and energy politics has caused division in Australian politics.

Now technology is advancing faster than anyone had anticipated and many fear that prolonging the use of fossil fuels will discourage investment in new technology and see Australia lag behind the rest of the world in the rapidly emerging new energy age.

Mr Kean said the choice was very clear.

"We can either get ahead of the curve, and can continue to create jobs and drive prosperity, or we can be left behind," he said.

But the government remains firmly committed to a gas-fired future.

"Gas will help and is helping to drive more for affordable, reliable energy in this country. It can help us to bring down emissions. It's the perfect complement to intermittent renewables as the former chief scientist, Alan Finkel, has told us," Mr Taylor said.

2021 March 10th - Energy Australia to close Yallourn power station early and build 350 megawatt battery

 

Victoria's Yallourn power station has been operating for 47 years.

Energy Australia will close the Yallourn power station in Victoria's Latrobe Valley in mid-2028, four years ahead of schedule, and build a giant power-generating battery instead.

The brown coal-fired plant produces about a fifth of the state's electricity and is Victoria's oldest power station.

It employs 500 permanent workers plus hundreds of contractors and was previously scheduled to close in 2032.

2021 - Feb 26th: Against the odds, South Australia is a renewable energy powerhouse. So how did they do it?

 

Less than two decades ago, South Australia generated all its electricity from fossil fuels. Last year, renewables provided a whopping 60 per cent of the state's electricity supply.

The remarkable progress came as national climate policy was gripped by paralysis — so how did it happen?

Our research set out to answer this question. We analysed policy documents and interviewed major actors in South Australia's energy transition to determine why it worked when so many others fail.

We found governments need enough political power to push through changes despite opposition from established fossil fuel interests. They must also watch the energy market closely to prevent and respond to major disruptions, such as a coal plant closing, and help displaced workers and their towns deal with the change.

South Australia shows how good public policy can enable dramatic emissions reduction, even in a privately owned electricity system. This provides important lessons for other governments in Australia and across the world.

Why is the energy transition so hard?

In decades past, fossil-fuel-dominated energy markets revolved around a few big, powerful players such as electricity generators and retailers. Overhauling such a system inevitably disrupts these incumbents and redistributes benefits, such as commercial returns, to newer entrants.

This can create powerful — and often vocal — losers, and lead to political problems for governments. The changes can also cause hardship for communities, which can be rallied to derail the transition.

South Australia is a world leader in renewables deployment

The change is even harder in a privatised energy market, such as South Australia's, where electricity generators and other players must stay profitable to survive.

In the renewables shift, fossil fuel businesses can quickly become commercially unviable and close. This risks supply shortages, as well as price increases like those after Victoria's Hazelwood coal plant closed in 2017.

The obstacles help explain why a wealthy nation such as Australia, with extremely high per capita emissions and cheap, plentiful renewable resources, has struggled to embrace its clean energy potential. Even frontrunners in environmental policy, such as Germany, have struggled to make the switch.

How South Australia did it

South Australia is a dry state — extremely vulnerable to climate change — with abundant wind and solar resources. These factors gave it the motivation and means to transition to renewables.

The South Australian Labor government, elected in 2002, adopted a target for 26 per cent renewables generation by 2020. At the time, wind energy was already a competitive supplier of new generation capacity in Europe, creating an established wind farm industry looking to invest.

Some of South Australia's best onshore wind potential was located near transmission lines running 300 kilometres from Port Augusta to Adelaide. This greatly reduced the cost of connecting new wind generators to the grid.

South Australia benefited greatly from the federal renewable energy target, established by the Howard government in 2001 and expanded under the Rudd government.

The scheme meant the South Australian government didn't need to offer its own incentives to meet its renewables target — it just had to be more attractive to private investors than other states. This was a relatively easy task. Under the state Labor government, South Australia's energy and environment policy was consistent and coordinated, in contrast to the weak and inconsistent policies federally, and in other states.

To attract renewable energy investors, the government made laws to help construct wind farms in rural zones away from towns and homes. New wind farms were regularly underwritten by state government supply contracts.

As the transition progressed, the state's largest coal generator, at Port Augusta, was wound back and eventually closed. To help workers and the town adjust, the state government supported employment alternatives, including a A$6 million grant towards a solar-powered greenhouse employing 220 people.

The Labor government enjoyed a long incumbency, and the state was not heavily reliant on the export of fossil fuels. This helped give it the political leverage to push through change in the face of opposition from vested interests.

It's not easy being green

South Australia's transition was not without controversy.

Between 2014 and 2018, the state's consumer electricity prices rose sharply. While critics sought to blame the increasing renewables share, it was largely due to other factors. These include South Australia's continued reliance on expensive gas-fired power and the closure of the Hazelwood coal-fired power station in neighbouring Victoria, which fed large amounts of power into South Australia.

And in late 2016, South Australia suffered a statewide blackout. Again, renewables were blamed, when the disaster was in fact due to storm damage and overly sensitive trip switches.

After a second, smaller blackout six months later, the then federal treasurer Scott Morrison brought a lump of coal into parliament and argued South Australia's renewables transition was:

…switching off jobs, switching off lights and switching off air conditioners and forcing Australian families to boil in the dark as a result of their Dark Ages policies.

In 2018, Labor lost office to a Liberal party highly critical of the renewables transition in opposition. But by then, the transition was well advanced. In our view, specific legislation would have been required to halt it.

The state Liberal government has now firmly embraced the renewables transition, setting a target for 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2030. By 2050, the government says, renewables could generate 500 per cent of the state's energy needs, with the surplus exported nationally and internationally.

Leading the world

The South Australia experience shows a successful renewables transition requires that governments:

• have enough political power to advance policies that disadvantage energy incumbents
• monitor the energy market and respond proactively to disruptions
• limit damage to displaced workers, businesses, consumers and communities.

It also highlights the importance of having transmission infrastructure near renewable resources before new generators are built.

As energy markets the world over grapple with making the clean energy transition, South Australia proves it can be done.

Michael McGreevy is a research associate at Flinders University. Fran Baum is a Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor and Foundation Director of the Southgate Institute for Health, Society & Equity at Flinders University. This article originally appeared on The Conversation.

2021 Feb 5th - Plans unveiled for world's biggest battery in the Hunter Valley - 1,200-megawatt battery

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-05/plans-unveiled-for-worlds-biggest-battery-in-hunter-valley/13124814

Planning is underway for the world's largest battery to be built in the NSW Hunter Valley, with the company behind it confident that it will be up and running in two years.

CEP Energy, whose chairman is former NSW premier Morris Iemma, has secured a 30-year lease to install a 1,200-megawatt battery at Kurri Kurri north-west of Newcastle.

The company said it would be eight times more powerful than the Hornsdale battery that fuels South Australia's grid, and while it would be able to store many types of energy, it was expected to mainly store solar-generated power.

2021 Jan 28th - Labor retreats from ambitious carbon targets

Federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese will drop climate spokesman Mark Butler from the key portfolio in a shake-up that aims to bridge a gulf within the party on gas fields, coal mines and greenhouse emissions. Mr Butler, one of the party’s strongest advocates for ambitious carbon targets, will lose the portfolio of climate change and energy after months of dispute over whether Labor should make a new pledge to cut emissions by 2030 or 2035.

Mr Albanese is expected to announce the reshuffle within days to transfer health spokesman Chris Bowen into the climate portfolio.

Mr Bowen, the party’s treasury spokesman at the last election, is said to be keen to take on climate and energy.

Labor insiders dismissed talk of Mr Albanese’s leadership being in question in the reshuffle, pointing to support for him in the left faction, the NSW right and the Victorian right.

Mr Butler takes on health and ageing at a key point in the pandemic, with the government facing questions over its vaccine rollout and its aged care policies ahead of the final report from the royal commission into the sector.

Senior figures portrayed Mr Butler’s new position as a central portfolio given the pandemic and given his experience as aged care minister in the Gillard government.

The change from Mr Butler to Mr Bowen will mark a shift in ownership of the climate portfolio from the left faction to the right of the party after a stand-off last year when the resources spokesman at the time, Joel Fitzgibbon, argued against setting an interim target for 2030 or 2035.

While Mr Albanese has pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 under a Labor government, some caucus members believe there is no need to set an interim goal that could make the party a bigger target at the next federal election.

Labor’s pledge at the last election, to reduce emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 compared to the Morrison government’s target of 26 to 28 per cent, remains in limbo until a decision is made on whether to recommit to it or update it for 2035.

Mr Fitzgibbon, who stood down from the resources portfolio after his clashes with Mr Butler at the end of last year, welcomed the news about the reshuffle but signalled he wanted a change on policy as well.

“Obviously I welcome the change,” he said.

“We have to send a clear signal to our traditional base that we are back, and this is a good start.

“But changing the jockey will not be enough in the absence of a shift in policy emphasis, calibration and language.”

Mr Albanese backed Mr Butler last November when some caucus members wanted him moved after the disputes with Mr Fitzgibbon.

“Yes, Mark Butler will remain as our climate change and energy spokesperson. Mark Butler is doing a fantastic job in that role,” Mr Albanese told reporters on November 13.

Mr Butler declared last year the party should go to the next election with an interim target to show how a Labor government would deliver net-zero emissions over the longer-term.

“You can’t set a mid-century target and then check in 2049 whether you’re on track to meet it. No one thinks that,” Mr Butler said in September.

Mr Fitzgibbon rejected that argument and the interim target remains to be decided.

2021 - Jan 14th: WA Government greenlights fracking exploration in Kimberley

 https://nit.com.au/wa-government-greenlights-fracking-exploration-in-kimberley/?fbclid=IwAR3EYiiwtG0b0KHpFK_C6pMkyDFlHTTBnmfrFVE6KqLV5CNKHWmcj-yw6Mw

Buru Energy and Origin Energy have partnered for drilling exploration and possible fracking in the Canning Basin of Western Australia’s Kimberley region despite protest from community.

The Canning Basin, known for its rich rock layers and geological formations, is significant to Aboriginal people and estimated to be between 70 million and 500 million-years-old.

These exploration regions are not subject to Western Australia’s fracking bans as the exploration licences were granted by the State’s Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.

It’s understood some of the proposed exploration sites overlap with the Roebuck Bay Ramsar Wetland catchment, the national heritage listed Fitzroy River, Karajarri Indigenous Protected Area, Yawuru Indigenous Protected Area and the proposed Edgar Ranges National Park.

“Origin’s partner in the Canning Basin, Buru Energy, has a good track record exploring and operating in the Kimberley and working with Traditional Owners. Buru Energy will continue to be the operator in the partnership with Origin,” an Origin spokesperson told NIT.

While Buru Energy declined to comment, an ASX announcement by the company said they plan to “significantly advance exploration” by means of 2D or 3D seismic and large-scale drilling prospects.

Executive Director of Environs Kimberley, Martin Pritchard, said seismic programs significantly scar the landscape and wildlife habitats.

“Seismic programs involve bulldozing land in grids and are extremely damaging, creating corridors for introduced predators like cats and foxes that kill native endangered animals like bilbies,” Pritchard said.

Naomi Pigram, a Yawuru and Wadjarri person and the Greens candidate for Kimberley in the upcoming Western Australian election, spoke to the devastating consequences this partnership posed.

“Kimberley people have come together on several occasions to protest against fracking in the Kimberley and it is becoming abundantly clear that either the State Government are hard of hearing or just don’t care about the people of the Kimberley,” she said.

“For me, it sends a message to the Kimberley people, that our lives and health, and that of our future generations, don’t matter.”

Despite this, Origin was confident in Buru Energy’s current arrangements.

“Origin respects Buru Energy’s track record in working with Traditional Owners and the agency of Kimberley Native Title holders, with access to independent advice and legal representation, to negotiate — not stop fracking.

While it remains the right of Traditional Owners to decide on these types of permits; they are faced with a delicate balancing act.

They can either opt for an agreement which can help improve their communities’ social outcomes or continue their opposition to mining and risk eventually being forced into a situation of dependence.

Regarding the renewal of exploration permits, Executive Director Resource Tenure, Tony Bullen, of WA’s Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety told NIT while Buru Energy must apply under the Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Resources Act 1967 (WA) to renew an exploration permit, the regulations and requirements for environmental plans under the Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Resources (Environment) Regulations 2012 (WA) are “not linked directly to the renewal process” in the Act.

“If an exploration permit is eligible for renewal, it can be renewed for a period of five years,” Bullen said.

It’s understood permit renewals can be granted by the Department without an accompanying environmental plan.

Researchers from Murdoch University recently found shale gas could not be a viable energy source for sustainable development unless there was “stringent regulation and compliance on the upstream resource development”.

The effects of not doing so were detailed in an independent scientific inquiry into fracking in Western Australia in 2017. It found there would be immediate negative impacts to Aboriginal heritage, land, air and water viability.

“If the government of the day has any genuine regard for the Traditional Owners of the Kimberley, then they would understand that the Kimberley as a whole is connected and destroying one part of the Country will most certainly impact the other,” Pigram said.