lee wrote on Jun 15^th, 2022 at 4:38pm:


No, because WA Labor had the brains to introduce reservation policy, unlike the Feds who were willingly screwed by the fossil lobby, as noted in the link.

lee wrote on Jun 16^th, 2022 at 6:23pm:

Circumstances were different in WA. , and Labor forced the issue in WA.
Development of the Gladstone gas export terminals and contracts  happened after WA had set its reserve policy, and the fossil companies won the argument with the Feds,  with their greed-based no reservation policy  for Gladstone gas exports. 

Environmentalists and their allies in big business have argued that batteries solve this problem. Battery technology has come a long way, with “mega-batteries” able to store and release power when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine. Indeed, South Australia is home to one of the biggest lithium batteries in the world, with installation of more big batteries planned for more states and territories.

Yet to build these mega-batteries we need more mining, which in turn releases more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Batteries for electric cars and renewable energy storage are made out of copper, zinc, aluminium and lithium. According to a report by the ABC, “a wind turbine needs four times more minerals than a coal-fired power station to generate the same amount of electricity”. The irony is that we will need to increase our carbon emissions to reduce them.

And not only does mining produce large amounts of carbon dioxide but mines also can leak toxic materials into waterways. Mines often are opposed by environmental groups for this reason. It can take years for new mines to be approved because of Australia’s high standards of environmental protection regulation.

To complicate things further, the trend in the corporate world is to avoid investment in mining because of environmental, social and governance considerations.

The result is that demand for the minerals that go into batteries is going up while supply is going down, leading to what some analysts have called “greenflation”.
...

The experience of Germany demonstrates the impact that renewables can have on electricity markets. A 2019 report produced by Deloitte on the German electricity market says newer, more modern coal-fired plants are able to meet the “flexibility challenge” posed by renewables, but older plants cannot.

Despite having the highest share of cheap renewable energy from wind and solar, Germany has the highest electricity prices in Europe. Fossil fuels are locked in as backup power, which has led Germany to become dependent on imported gas from Russia. This is despite spending $743bn on its energy transition.

Some countries, such as France, Sweden and Iceland, do get most of their electricity from low-carbon dioxide sources. But these low-CO2 sources are not wind and solar, which make up only 2 per cent and 1 per cent of global total energy production, they are hydropower and nuclear.
Energy Minister Chris Bowen recently described the case for nuclear energy as “a complete joke” and moratoriums on gas exploration and extraction remain in place across the country. West Australian Premier Mark McGowan has announced that his state will shut two coal-fired power plants. In addition to the two plants in WA, the Liddell power plant in NSW is scheduled to close next year and Yallourn power station in Victoria is set to shut in 2028.

When the Hazelwood coal-fired plant in Victoria closed in 2017, the closure resulted in higher energy prices that lasted for years. The Australian Energy Regulator reported that in 2018 the closure of Hazelwood led to average electricity spot prices that were 85 per cent higher than the previous year in Victoria, 63 per cent higher in NSW, 53 per cent in Queensland and 32 per cent higher in SA.
...
From watching the European experience, we know baseload power can come only from coal, gas or nuclear energy. If our leaders do not manage this situation carefully and learn from other nations, Australians may have to prepare for an energy crisis that never ends.
Clare Lehman

We should build more hydro power stations and replace old coal/gas fired stations with modern ones. Also a couple of latest tech small nuclear power stations. Tiny S Korea has 24 (and massive manufacturing sector), Belgium 7, Sweden 6 (again, massive manufacturing sector).

Australia is 26 million people on an amazingly energy and resource rich CONTINENT with sky high energy prices and no real high tech, high skill industry.  Exporting Iron ore, coal/gas and education to Asia is not a smart, long-term plan, it is, rather, turning Australia into an Asian dependency.

FutureTheLeftWant wrote on Jun 17^th, 2022 at 10:35am:


Another one who doesn't understand that renewables are weather dependent.

So where would we make the fortune? Solar panels? No - you need reliable energy supply for semiconductors.

Wind Turbines? No - you need reliable energy supply  for steel, copper, aluminium etc.

Lithium batteries? No - you need reliable energy supply again.

Reliable energy that China has in spades.

FutureTheLeftWant wrote on Jun 17^th, 2022 at 12:28pm:



Billy's talking to you, Yappy mong -  and so say all of us:



Geddit?

FutureTheLeftWant wrote on Jun 17^th, 2022 at 12:28pm:

Is Obama  all for green energy?

"Former President Barack Obama has ordered three massive propane tanks for his Martha’s Vineyard property as energy prices nationwide continue to surge.

The office of the select board of Edgartown, Massachusetts, told The Daily Caller News Foundation that an application for an “underground propane installment was approved at the 79 Turkeyland Cove Road address,” the location of a property owned by former President Barack Obama. The tanks are to be used for “residential purposes,” the office told TheDCNF, and have a total capacity approved of “2,500 gallons which was broken into two 1,000 gallon tanks and one 500 gallon tank.” "

https://dailycaller.com/2022/06/15/gas-former-president-obama-propane-tank-marth...

And others for those who don't like the Daily Caller.