22 November 2024

COP29

Aus and UK join forces for energy transition (Energy Magazine): Australia has signed a new climate and energy partnership with the UK to support domestic and international renewable energy markets and advance the clean energy transition. The partnership was signed at the Conference of the Parties (COP29) United Nations climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Australia commits additional $50 million to deal with climate change (ABC News): The Australian government has committed an extra $50 million towards a global fund to deal with the loss and damage caused by climate change. The government made the announcement at the United Nations climate summit in Azerbaijan, which is trying to set a new global goal for funding.

As the world wobbles on climate, Australia doubles down (The Sydney Morning Herald): Australia has doubled down on its promise to cut greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Paris Agreement goal of keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees and on its bid to host United Nations climate talks in 2026. “Two years ago, I told you Australia was back,” Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said during a speech at the COP29 climate talks in Azerbaijan, which have been bogged down over finance and rattled by backsliding from powerful nations.

Paris agreement is working, Australian minister tells Cop29, but much deeper cuts needed by 2035 (The Guardian): The Australian climate change minister, Chris Bowen, has declared the landmark Paris agreement “is working” as it had brought the world back from “the brink of catastrophic 4C warming”, but argued countries must set the most ambitious emissions targets possible for 2035 to limit worsening global heating. Giving Australia’s national statement on the conference floor at the Cop29 summit in Azerbaijan, he also pledged A$50m (US$32.5m) towards a global loss and damage fund to help the world’s most vulnerable people to repair the damage from climate breakdown.

Australia accused of ‘exporting climate destruction’ on tiny Pacific neighbours with massive gas expansion plans (The Guardian): Pacific governments at a UN climate summit are criticising Australia’s plans for a massive gas industry expansion in Western Australia, saying it could result in 125 times more greenhouse gas emissions than their island nations release in a year. As the Cop29 summit in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku begins its second week, representatives from Vanuatu and Tuvalu have called on Australia to stop approving new fossil fuel developments, including a proposal to extend the life of Woodside’s North West Shelf gas facility until 2070.

Australia pledges $125 million to support Pacific’s renewable energy shift (PV Magazine): The Australian government announced at the UN Climate Change Conference in Azerbaijan that it is partnering with Pacific nations to support their clean energy transition and improve energy security with a $125 million (USD 80.76 million) investment in renewables. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the investment aims to equip nation partners in the Pacific region with the tools needed to progress their energy transition and ensure policy and regulations are in place to help scale up grid-based renewable energy assets and infrastructure.

UN climate chief at deadlocked COP29: 'Cut the theatrics' (News): The UN's climate chief told countries at the deadlocked COP29 summit on Monday to "cut the theatrics" as pressure mounts on G20 leaders to deliver a breakthrough. As the UN climate talks limp into a second week in Azerbaijan, the world is no closer to a finance deal for poorer countries that will determine the success or failure of COP29.

Rich nations pressed to put money on table at UN climate talks (The Australian): Pressure mounted on wealthy nations Wednesday to put a figure on the table as time runs out at COP29 to strike a deal on climate assistance for poorer countries. With two days left to break the impasse at the UN talks in Azerbaijan, rich nations have still not revealed how much they are ready to provide the developing world to fight climate change.

Australia and Turkey in standoff to be host of crucial 2026 climate talks (The Guardian): Australia is locked in a standoff with Turkey over which will host vital UN climate talks in 2026, where the question of whether the world can limit global heating in line with scientific advice is likely to be decided. Australia’s government wants to host the summit in partnership with Pacific nations, which are among the countries most threatened by climate breakdown.

CLIMATE POLITICS

Greens drop climate trigger demand in attempt to restart Nature Positive talks with Labor (The Guardian): The Greens have dropped their demand for a climate trigger to be incorporated in the government’s stalled Nature Positive legislation, indicating they are now prepared to pass the bills in return for an Australia-wide ban on native forest logging alone. The party has previously refused to support Labor’s legislation, insisting that both a climate trigger and a forest-logging ban must be included.

Tanya Plibersek says government needs Climate Change Authority advice before it can release 2035 target (ABC News): Labor is blaming a law that was proposed and backed by the crossbench, including the Greens, for why the government is unlikely to announce a 2035 national emissions target ahead of the coming election. Speaking after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the weekend refused to commit to releasing a number before Australians vote next year, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek indicated one reason was that the government was awaiting advice from the Climate Change Authority on what the target should be.

Government tells Future Fund to invest in climate and housing but preserve focus on returns (ABC News): The federal government will direct the Future Fund to invest in housing and the green energy transition where profitable, in the most consequential role change in its 18-year history. The government will also give medium-term certainty to the $230 billion fund by promising not to draw down on its holdings for at least eight years, until 2032-33.

G20: Albanese raises climate, Ukraine war as Biden looks to Trump proof (The Nightly): Rio de Janeiro: Australia has called on G20 leaders to confront the ongoing wars in the Middle East and Ukraine and stay the course on fighting climate change as the world braces for a significant period of uncertainty. Anthony Albanese will make the case in two interventions at the G20 in Brazil on Monday and Tuesday (local time) around meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and EU President Ursula von der Leyen.

Dutton best suited to handle Trump, Labor still facing minority: poll (Australian Financial Review): Significantly more voters believe Peter Dutton will be better than Anthony Albanese at dealing with Donald Trump, in a poll that shows Labor still faces the prospect of minority government. As the prime minister landed in Brazil on Sunday for the G20, which will be dominated by the political upheaval in the United States, the latest The Australian Financial Review/Freshwater Strategy poll found Trump’s victory had led voters in Australia to be broadly pessimistic on issues from global stability to climate change.

NSW parliamentary report recommends planning adapt to rapidly warming climate's impacts (ABC News): A New South Wales parliamentary inquiry has recommended widespread changes to planning methods to ensure communities and the environment are protected from the impacts of climate change. The multi-party committee, chaired by Greens MLC Sue Higginson, set out to investigate how to protect nature and communities from climate change impacts with a focus on fires and floods.

South Australia may underwrite gas generators in new plan to back up 100 pct net renewables target (Renew Economy): South Australia, the state with the world-leading target of reaching 100 per cent net renewables by 2027, has quietly released a proposal for a new “Firm Energy Reliability Mechanism” that includes its existing – and possibly future – gas generators. The proposal from the state Labor government is sure to create controversy, not least because the federal government has refused entreaties from the gas industry to include the fossil fuel technology as part of its Capacity Investment Scheme.

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

‘The world is watching’: Forrest backs treaty for fossil fuel phase-out (WA Today): Mining billionaire Andrew Forrest has become the first business leader to back a proposed treaty setting concrete deadlines for the global phase-out of fossil fuels.The Fortescue boss used the backdrop of this year’s COP climate summit in Azerbaijan to pledge his support for the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, which was launched in 2019 to end the expansion of fossil fuels and accelerate the transition away from coal, oil and gas.

Santos’ own director queried use of ‘clean’ definition: ACCR (Australian Financial Review): One of Santos’ own directors queried the oil and gas producer’s use of the term “clean” in relation to natural gas and “blue” hydrogen when they would still result in carbon dioxide emissions, lawyers for an activist organisation have told the Federal Court. The querying of the terms “clean”, “cleaner” and “decarbonisation” in Santos’ draft 2021 climate change report by then-director Peter Hearl exemplifies the argument that readers of Santos documents around that time have been misled by the oil and gas producer’s language, said Noel Hutley, SC, acting for the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility.

Don’t dump corporate climate targets because of Trump, CFOs say (Australian Financial Review): Some of the country’s most senior finance executives say the re-election of Donald Trump to the White House will not end the need for Australian companies to have net zero targets – despite the president-elect’s well-established disregard for climate change mitigation and red tape. The chief financial officer of Ramsay Health Care, Martyn Roberts, told The Australian Financial Review CFO Live Summit that it was important to consider other trade partners such as Europe and the United Kingdom and their stronger approach to decarbonisation.

Japanese giant Mizuho takes $30m stake in green advisory firm (Australian Financial Review): Japanese conglomerate Mizuho has taken a $US20 million ($30 million) minority stake in Pollination, an Australian-founded investment bank and advisory business established five years ago. The global firm, which focuses on financing the transition away from fossil fuels, was founded by Martijn Wilder and Tony O’Sullivan, and has offices in London, Sydney, Melbourne, Singapore, Chicago and Washington DC.

GREEN PROJECTS AND INITIATIVES

Neoen wants to build first wind project in state where it is building country’s biggest battery (Renew Economy): French renewable energy developer Neoen is seeking state government approval for what would be its first wind project in Western Australia, where it is half way through building what will be the country’s biggest battery project. Neoen is seeking approval for the 200 megawatt Narrogin wind farm though the state Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It wants to build a 25 turbine project, which will also include a 100 MW, 200 MWh battery component, on farmland between Narrogin and Williams, south-east of Perth.

Horizon powers up vanadium battery tech trial in Kununurra (PV Magazine): Horizon Power has commissioned a 78 kW / 220 kWh vanadium flow battery (VFB) at Kununurra in Western Australia’s (WA) north as it examines how the technology can be best utilised to support renewable energy supply in regional and remote areas. The pilot project will test whether VFB technology – which proponents say can provide up to 12 hours of storage and operate across a wide temperature range – can solve technical challenges associated with establishing long-duration energy storage solutions in extreme environments.

Lynas leads way with Australia’s first rare earths processing plant (PV Magazine): Western Australian-headquartered mining company Lynas Rare Earths has officially begun processing rare earth concentrate essential for clean energy technologies such as batteries, electric vehicles, and solar panels at its newly opened facility in Kalgoorlie. The $800 million (USD 516.5 million) plant is the first rare earths processing facility in Australia, and the largest outside of China. Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King said the new “state-of-the-art” facility is an important step for Australia’s determination to diversify its supplies away from China, which currently controls most rare earth manufacturing.

M4 Wave Energy Converter trial begins as experts seek more support for wave power (ABC News): Australia's transition away from fossil fuels is being paved by sun and wind, but what about waves? Wave energy generation — the concept of using ocean waves to create electricity — is still in its early stages, but researchers and industry figures say it is a field in which Australia could be a world leader.

Neoen set to launch Thunderbolt wind project, despite Joyce campaign in heart of New England (Renew Economy): Neoen has locked in the final piece of planning for its proposed Thunderbolt wind farm in New South Wales (NSW), after securing federal approval for the 192 MW, $373 million project. The project will now be just a wind farm, after the French developer killed off a 120 megawatt (MW) solar component late in 2022 on the grounds of falling prices for solar in the state. The original plan also included a 400 MW battery with multiple hours of storage.

Iberdrola strikes renewable energy supply deal with 13 NSW councils (PV Magazine): Iberdrola Australia has secured a multi-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with a collective of 13 regional New South Wales (NSW) councils with a portion of the renewable energy to be sourced from the 190 MW Avonlie Solar Farm near Narrandera in the state’s Riverina region. Under the terms of the Powering Tomorrow: Regional Councils NSW PPA, Iberdrola will supply more than 390 GWh of electricity to 163 large council sites and streetlighting across the 13 participating council areas. The agreement is effective from 1 January 2025 and extends through until the end of 2030.

Origin adds more storage to Eraring battery, making it biggest in Australia and one of world’s largest (Renew Economy): Origin Energy has announced a third stage to the giant battery at Eraring, ensuring that the site of Australia’s biggest coal generator is transformed into the country’s biggest battery, and one of the biggest in the world. The company announced on Thursday that the new expansion will add 700 megawatt hours of storage, essentially turning the first stage of the project from a two hour battery rated at 460 MW and 1070 MWh, into a four hour battery rated at 460 MW and 1770 MWh, making it better suit to feed into the extended evening demand peaks.

Sale plans put end to Fortescue green hydrogen project (PV Magazine): Australian mining and energy giant Fortescue’s plan to develop a 550 MW green hydrogen production facility at Gibson Island is on the rocks with project partner Incitec Pivot announcing it intends to sell the Brisbane site. Fortescue in late 2022 partnered with fertiliser and explosives group Incitec to develop green hydrogen and green ammonia facilities at the Gibson Island site, which houses an ammonia production facility that was closed in January 2023.

Whyalla could play host to low-carbon sustainable aviation fuels produced with renewables (Renew Economy): British synthetic fuels developer Zero Petroleum is exploring the possibility of building a low-carbon sustainable aviation fuel production facility in the South Australian city of Whyalla, in collaboration with Qantas Airways. The feasibility study is expected to take six months and will evaluate the technical, economic, and environmental viability of a facility which would be capable of producing up to 10 million litres of synthetic aviation fuel, gasoline, and diesel each year.

ARENA tackles CER integration challenges (Energy Magazine): The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) will provide $1.7 million to UNSW’s Project CICCADA to better understand how the rollout of consumer energy resources (CER) will work within the network. The $4.3 million project will analyse large real-world datasets from CER such as rooftop solar, household batteries and electric vehicles to better understand how to integrate them into the National Energy Market (NEM).

World’s largest onshore wind turbine powers up for first time (Renew Economy): Chinese wind energy giant Sany Renewable Energy has reportedly powered up the world’s largest onshore wind turbine, a 15 megawatt (MW) behemoth capable of powering 160,000 households with turbine blades nearly the length of the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Sany Renewable Energy successfully hoisted its 15MW wind turbine back in early October, breaking two world records as it did so, as it is the world’s largest single-unit capacity turbine and the largest rotor diameter for an onshore turbine.

OTHER MATTERS OF INTEREST

Farmers and communities to reap billions for hosting wind and solar projects, report finds (Renew Economy): Payments to farmers for hosting renewable energy infrastructure will hit a total of $1 billion by 2030, and could reach up to $10 billion by 2050, indicating just how valuable wind and solar farms will be to sustaining farming operations in Australia. Farmers in Queensland and New South Wales (NSW) will reap the bulk of the windfalls over time, with payments rocketing to the multiple billions to landholders in those two states alone by 2050, according to the latest report from Farmers for Climate Action and the Clean Energy Council.

Report: renewable investments reducing emissions by 30 per cent (Energy Magazine): A new report by the Clean Energy Council and Green Energy Markets has revealed that Australia’s emissions have reduced by 30 per cent because a surge in renewable energy investments since 2015 has resulted in more than 200 million tonnes of avoided CO2 emissions. Launched at COP29 in Baku, the Emissions reductions delivered by renewable energy – 2015 to 2025 report shows that by the end of 2025, emissions will be 40 per cent lower thanks to installation of renewable energy projects and solar systems since 2015.

World’s 1.5C climate target ‘deader than a doornail’, experts say (The Guardian): The internationally agreed goal to keep the world’s temperature rise below 1.5C is now “deader than a doornail”, with 2024 almost certain to be the first individual year above this threshold, climate scientists have gloomily concluded – even as world leaders gather for climate talks on how to remain within this boundary. Three of the five leading research groups monitoring global temperatures consider 2024 on track to be at least 1.5C (2.7F) hotter than pre-industrial times, underlining it as the warmest year on record, beating a mark set just last year. The past 10 consecutive years have already been the hottest 10 years ever recorded.

Australia’s climate rating slips because of plans to increase coal and gas production (Renew Economy): Australia’s plans to open new gas fields and recent approval for three massive coal mine expansions has seen the country slip two places in this year’s global Climate Change Performance Index. The index, published on Wednesday on the sidelines of COP29 climate talks being held in Baku, Azerbaijan, is authored by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute, and CAN International to assess the progress made by the world’s largest emitters in terms of emissions, renewables, energy use, and climate policy.

Renewable energy scare campaign adds apples and oranges to get $500bn (The Guardian): ?Friday’s front page in Murdoch media’s the Daily Telegraph, declaring a “$500B GREEN HOLE”, could mark the opening salvo of scary claims about the cost of climate action in the run-up to next year’s federal election. Similarly bold claims worked well in the US presidential election to confound or confuse voters. Expect a barrage of such reports, particularly around contested issues such as energy.

A climate solution or distraction? The carbon capture facility at Chevron's Gorgon project tells a cautionary tale (ABC News): Beside the turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean, on top of the red sand of Western Australia's arid north-west, relics of Australia's industrial past stand like museum pieces. The derricks of oil wells bob up and down on Barrow Island, more than 1,200 kilometres north of Perth, much as they have done since the discovery of reserves in the 60s.