24 May 2024

CLIMATE POLITICS

NSW government throws Eraring power station a lifeline until 2027 (The Sydney Morning Herald): The Minns government will pay Origin Energy up to $450 million over the next two years to extend the life of Australia’s largest coal-fired power station, Eraring, should the company opt in to a deal that NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey insisted was “not an act of corporate welfare”.

WA has no hope of achieving net zero emissions targets by 2050 without radical change, secret government report finds (ABC News): Western Australia is on track for record-high greenhouse gas emissions this year and will not reach net zero by 2050 if business as usual continues, according to a secret government-commissioned report never made public. The October 2023 report projected WA would emit 91.5 million tonnes of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent) this year, 20 per cent above 2005 levels.

The fingerprints of climate change are all over a budget navigating an economy in transition (ABC News): If budgets are the government's attempt to chart the course for the next few years, what can this one teach us about how climate change is leaving its mark, and how the government is looking to tackle it?

“We want to make more things here:” Albanese outlines plan to grab share of battery supply chain (Renew Economy): Federal Labor has unveiled a plan to transform Australia into a globally competitive producer of batteries and battery materials by as early as 2035, despite starting from a position of occupying less than 1% of global supply chain today. The ambitious challenge is laid out in the much anticipated National Battery Strategy, unveiled on Thursday by prime minister Anthony Albanese and minister for industry and science Ed Husic.

WA’s lack of progress on ‘vital’ carbon capture underwhelms minister (WA Today): Progress on carbon capture has been “disappointing” but is vital for the future of gas and industry in Australia, the federal government says. WA Energy Minister Reece Whitby told the oil and gas industry at a conference in Perth on Tuesday it could “go the way of the dinosaurs” if it continued to vent greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere freely.

Vic Labor playing ‘ideological games’ on gas, says industry (Australian Financial Review): Resources industry, business and union figures slammed the Victorian Labor Party’s vote to oppose the federal government’s gas strategy and warned “reckless ideological games” could put the energy security of millions of people at risk.

At last, Australia has fuel efficiency standards – but they’re weaker than they could have been (The Conversation): After decades of debate and no action, Australia’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard has finally passed federal parliament. It will apply to new cars sold from July next year. Setting a standard promises to cut transport emissions and send us further down the road to net zero by 2050.

Australia banks on batteries in plan to move away from ‘dig-and-ship’ economy (The Guardian): The Albanese government has unveiled the first national battery strategy aimed at turning Australia from a “dig-and-ship” economy that sells off its critical minerals into a powerhouse manufacturer of better and safer renewable energy storage. The strategy aims to end Australia’s reliance on China for the batteries that power mobile phones, electric cars, scooters and heavy equipment and that will eventually support a grid powered by wind and solar, transitioning the country to a “renewable energy superpower”.

CARBON MARKETS

Big polluters will be forced to come clean on emissions under proposed rule change (Renew Economy): NSW will insist big polluters hand over transparent and reliable information on the environmental impact of new projects as the state struggles towards meeting its emissions targets. The NSW Environment Protection Authority said on Monday that draft planning system changes would for the first time put certain requirements on those behind high-emitting sites like coal mines and landfill operations.

'Back to the future' for carbon credit scheme (The West Australian): Changes to the carbon credit scheme will allow third-party stakeholders to come up with innovative ways to reduce emissions but critics say it could undermine the system. A new proponent-led process will allow projects and methods to be developed outside of government.

Subsidy wars: Carbon capture cost adds up for fertiliser maker (Australian Financial Review): Carbon capture and storage would add 50 per cent to the cost of producing ammonia in the Pilbara, the boss of one of Australia’s largest producers says, making it uneconomic without further government support compared with US fertiliser made with cheap gas and heavy subsidies under the Inflation Reduction Act.

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Businesses and directors could face multi-million dollar penalties if they fail to disclose their climate impact (The Conversation): Large businesses will have to publicly disclose detailed information about what they are doing to reduce carbon emissions and other climate-related financial information under legislation before federal parliament. Under the new legislation companies will have to include a separate sustainability report in their annual report.

Santos calls for market-led decarbonisation (Business News): Santos boss Kevin Gallagher wants government to let the free market drive decarbonisation, claiming an agenda against fossil fuels will not facilitate an effective transition. Mr Gallagher told a panel at the Australian Energy Producers conference in Perth this morning that a culture of government “trying to pick winners and losers” needed to change to drive the sector forward.

Yara tempers green hydrogen vision (Business News): Yara Pilbara has conceded its vision for an ammonia plant fueled by green hydrogen is years away, as it explores options for carbon capture alongside Woodside Energy and Santos. Yara is developing the hydrogen project Yuri to first production next year to fuel its 800,000 tonne per annum ammonia plant in the Pilbara.

Woodside eyes data centres to justify hydrogen bet (Australian Financial Review): Woodside Energy is looking to data centres’ hunger for green power as a potential solution to the problem of finding customers willing to justify the oil and gas giant’s commercial-scale bet on green hydrogen. Woodside’s failure to greenlight a hydrogen project was one of the sticking points in its stand-off with major shareholders who voted down its climate action plan at the company’s annual meeting last month.

GREEN PROJECTS AND INITIATIVES

Plans unveiled for massive $3.5 billion wind and solar powered green iron project for Queensland (Renew Economy): Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners has thrown its hefty investment weight behind ambitious plans to convert Queensland magnetite ore into green iron, using the state’s vast wind and solar resources and one biggest renewable hydrogen projects under development in Australia.

Horizon Power goes renewables-first in latest remote standalone power tender (Renew Economy): Horizon Power wants five standalone renewable-first generators to supply power to remote towns in the north of Western Australia, and has explicitly ruled out fossil fuel-only options. The state-owned power company is seeking the most renewables for the cheapest price, backed by either a battery or potentially a hydrogen system, to provide almost 10,000 kWh of power to 10,272 homes and businesses in Broome, Derby, Camballin/Looma, Fitzroy Crossing and Halls Creek.

Amp locks in contracts for massive 10GW Cape Hardy green hydrogen and ammonia project (Renew Economy): A major green hydrogen, green ammonia and advanced fuels project backed by up to 10GW of electrolyser capacity has taken a crucial step forward in South Australia, with the finalisation of all required commercial agreements announced by developer Amp Energy. Amp Energy reported the milestone on Tuesday, which includes a deal with ASX-listed resources outfit Iron Road to develop its Cape Hardy Advanced Fuels project within Iron Road’s 1,207-hectare Cape Hardy Industrial Port Precinct, on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula.

No more buzz – hydrogen is finally trying to get real (Australian Financial Review): At the World Hydrogen Summit, the sector’s annual bellwether in Rotterdam, Willemien Terpstra, CEO of Dutch gas network operator Gasunie, peered from the podium on the main stage. The hall was only half-full. Many of the 17,000 participants were out in the two cavernous exhibition halls, roaming among the 500 corporate stands, chugging coffee and pressing flesh.

Horizon Power hits milestone for community partnerships program (Energy Magazine): The latest round of Horizon Power’s community partnerships program has awarded $468,888 in funding to 57 regional and remote community organisations and events throughout Western Australia. The program has awarded almost $4.5 million to more than 450 initiatives in regional Western Australia since 2020.

Critics say Aussies can’t make cheap solar panels. This start-up says they’re wrong (Australian Financial Review): At an industrial park near Sydney’s Botany Bay, SunDrive founders Vince Allen and David Hu are striving to turn world record-breaking solar panel technology into a business and bring an industry that Australia largely invented in its modern form back to our shores.

OTHER MATTERS OF INTEREST

Environmental Defenders Office cleared by federal environment department over Santos court case (ABC News): A federal review has found the Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) did not breach a funding agreement during a court case aimed at suspending an undersea gas pipeline off the Northern Territory coast. The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water has released its report on the EDO's conduct, after Santos won a federal court challenge in January initiated by a group of Tiwi Islands elders.

Will government investment make green hydrogen a reality in Australia? (The Conversation): In the budget last week, the government was keen to talk about its efforts to turn Australia into a renewable superpower under the umbrella of the Future Made in Australia policies. Future Made is a framework that sets out how to target green subsidies to drive investment in everything from solar to critical minerals to green hydrogen. The policy lands at a time when the world is racing towards a future green economy. America has its Inflation Reduction Act, while the European Union has its Green Deal and China has powered ahead with green technologies.

Critical minerals for the world – or just for the US? Turning Australia into a green minerals powerhouse comes with risks (The Conversation): Globalisation is on shaky ground. As China rises, the United States and its allies are moving to reduce their reliance on the world’s factory. The rivalry between the US and China is wide-ranging, from competition in technology over silicon chips and artificial intelligence to the critical minerals essential for green energy technologies such as grid batteries, wind turbines and electric vehicles.

A new ruling says countries – including NZ – must take action on climate change under the law of the sea (The Conversation): In a significant development for small island nations threatened by rising seas, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) has found greenhouse gases constitute marine pollution.

What is ‘Net Zero’, anyway? A short history of a monumental concept (The Conversation): Last month, the leaders of the G7 declared their commitment to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 at the latest. Closer to home, the Albanese government recently introduced legislation to establish a Net Zero Economy Authority, promising it will catalyse investment in clean energy technologies in the push to reach net zero.