5 November 2021

CLIMATE POLITICS

Scott Morrison tells COP26 Australia will exceed 2030 target in bid to fend off criticism (The Guardian):? Scott Morrison has used his national statement at the Cop26 to emphasise that Australia will probably overachieve on its 2030 emissions reduction target in an effort to blunt international criticism about his government's lack of climate ambition.?While the lead-up to the Glasgow summit was dominated by Morrison's negotiations with the National party to land a net zero commitment by 2050, the UN-led event is focused on ambition for the 2030s.?

COP26: Former UN climate chief slams Australia over climate goals as world leaders meet for climate summit (News.com.au):? Australia has been labelled “completely irresponsible” and called out for digging “dark holes of poison for itself” as global leaders meet for critical climate talks.?The G20 summit in Rome finished without many concrete commitments on emissions reduction. Now Prime Minister Scott Morrison faces the COP26 United Nations climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland.?British Prime Minister Boris Johnson welcomed more than 120 world leaders to historic climate talks in Scotland on Monday with the stark warning: “It’s one minute to midnight, and we need to act now.”?He will use the opportunity to warn leaders in a speech that concludes that “the world is at one minute to midnight and the world needs to act now”, while primarily focusing on “coal, cars, cash and trees”.?The G20 members including China, India and Western nations collectively emit nearly 80 per cent of global carbon emissions, but campaigners’ hopes for more decisive action heading in to COP26 were dashed.?

Global methane deal with shape Australia despite Morrison: experts (The Australian Financial Review):? The Biden administration’s global initiative to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent by the end of the decade will affect Australian industry despite Prime Minister Scott Morrison refusing to sign on to the pledge, investor groups and analysts say.?But they caution the initiative – endorsed by more than 100 other countries – will wash through the Australian economy inefficiently, meaning industry will be forced to act, but less consistently and productively than might have been possible via a nationally adopted approach.?

Morrison government climate plan will fail if solely reliant on technology, thinktank reports (The Guardian):? The Morrison government has been warned its plan for carbon neutrality by 2050 will fail if it is solely reliant on investing in new technology.?The Grattan Institute’s Towards Net Zero report, released on Monday, has suggested the Australian government would need to pull many other policy levers to reach net zero, including vehicle emissions standards, energy efficiency obligations and rules on use of carbon credits.?The report’s lead author, Tony Wood, suggested that the Morrison government’s net zero plan, announced on Tuesday, failed to show how emissions reduction would be achieved outside the electricity sector.?Scott Morrison will attend the Cop26 climate talks in Glasgow from Monday without an increased 2030 emissions reduction target, despite international pressure from the UK, EU, US and Pacific island nations to significantly increase ambition.?The Pacific Islands Association of Non-governmental Organisations has urged “rich” nations to “move significantly faster to reduce global emissions by 2030” in order to limit temperature rises to 1.5 degrees. They have warned that heating beyond that would be “devastating for our region and some of our countries in the Pacific would be under the ocean”.?

Scott Morrison plays down Australia's overall emissions compared to China's, but that's not the whole story (ABC News): China's President Xi Jinping didn't make it to the Glasgow talks, instead addressing the global climate conference from home.?The absence of the leader of world's biggest emitter was noted by US President Joe Biden, who cast doubt over China's commitment to emissions reduction.?Prime Minister Scott Morrison regularly highlights the sheer volume of China's emissions and its central role to tackling the global issue of climate change.?He cites it as evidence of Australia's relatively small contribution to the problem of global warming, providing himself with a rationale for not introducing more ambitious emissions reduction plans.?But just how do the emissions of China and Australia stack up? And how does it affect the global climate talks taking place in Glasgow??In 2020, China emitted 13.8 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide and equivalent greenhouse gases. That's 13,800,000,000 tonnes.?By comparison, Australia emitted 512 megatonnes, which is 512,000,000 tonnes.?If all of the zeros are making your eyes water, we can put it another way that has a few less: China emits about 27 times more greenhouse gases than Australia.?

Glasgow pledges may be enough to cap global warming below 2°C, IEA says (RenewEconomy):? Pledges to slash greenhouse gas emissions announced at the COP26 talks in Glasgow this week may be enough to keep average global warming to below 2°C?a new analysis published by the International Energy Agency suggests.?While the success of the COP26 talks will not be fully measurable until after the negotiations wind up next week, the IEA has found that new national commitments to zero net emissions and strengthened interim targets could be enough to limit warming to just 1.8°C.?Such an outcome might be enough for the UK hosts of COP26 to claim a victory in global efforts to tackle climate change.?The Glasgow climate talks have seen a number of countries announce new commitments to zero net emissions targets – including Australia (2050) and India (2070).?More importantly, a number countries have committed to slash methane emissions by 2030, and other initiatives include ending investment in new coal fired power stations and ramping up investment in clean energy technologies.?

Glasgow 'grinding' in the right direction, says Carbon Market CEO (The Australian Financial Review):? The head of Australia’s Carbon Market Institute, John Connor, who represents some of the nation’s biggest climate change investors, has hit back at suggestions this year’s UN talks in Glasgow are a failure saying the world has made material progress.?Speaking as researchers behind a closely watched carbon accounting project unveiled a sharp downward revision in global estimates of CO2 emissions, thanks to a reassessment of land-use changes that suggests pollution levels have been flat rather than rising over the past decade, Mr Connor rejected the idea that COP26 has fallen short of expectations.?

More than 40 countries to make pledge to end coal generation, but not Australia (RenewEconomy):? A group of more than 40 countries and more than 100 organisations will pledge to phase out coal fired generation in a UK-led effort to transition the global energy system away from the fossil fuel responsible for much of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.?The commitment will be made during the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow, as the focus shifts from incentivising new investment flows into climate-friendly infrastructure to tackling the transition of the global energy system.?The Global Coal to Clean Power Transition Statement has been signed by 190 countries and organisations, including sub-national governments, financial institutions and utilities, that have committed to phase out coal power and end support for new coal power plants.?Signatories include a number of major international banks, which have committed to end investments in coal projects, with NatWest, Lloyds Banking, HSBC joining the statement for the first time.?

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Business urged to 'get on board' new climate disclosure (The Australian Financial Review):? Top listed companies will face new pressure on climate disclosure after the launch of a new global standard setter for sustainability reporting announced at COP26 in Glasgow.?The new International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) will sit alongside the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and will elevate sustainability reporting to the same status as financial reporting.?

Legal challenge to $21 million Beetaloo Basin grant program hears Resources Minister not required to consider climate risks (ABC News): Lawyers for the federal government are arguing the Resources Minister was not required to consider the risks of climate change under legislation related to $21 million in grants recently awarded to a gas company.?The $21 million was handed to Imperial Oil and Gas to fund three exploration wells in the gas-rich Beetaloo Basin, south of Darwin.?Environmentalists spent yesterday challenging the grants in the Federal Court, arguing they are invalid because Minister Keith Pitt failed to consider the risks of climate change, which they said was required.?One issue in the case is whether the minister was required to consider those risks as part of his "reasonable enquiries" when awarding the subsidies.?The minister's lawyers have today argued the minister only needed to be satisfied his enquiries were reasonable — in other words, it is a subjective measure and not an objective one.?

Banks' exposure to climate to be tested (The West Australian): Australia’s central bank and banking regulator are taking the temperature of the financial vulnerability to climate change of the country’s biggest lenders.?The Reserve Bank of Australia and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority are conducting climate vulnerability assessments with the five largest banks.?They will look at how banks may adjust their business models in line with risks posed by climate change and the resulting transition as well as the economic consequences.?“The physical impact of climate change, and the global transition to a lower emissions economy, will affect economic output, prices and employment,” APRA and the RBA said in a statement on Thursday.?“Climate change will be a driver of change in the value of certain assets and income streams, and therefore poses a risk to financial institutions and financial stability.”?

Farmers split on Australia's refusal to sign up to global methane pledge at Cop26 (The Guardian):? Farmer groups have split over the Coalition’s rejection of Joe Biden’s global methane pledge, with the National Farmers Federation backing the government’s stance while Farmers for Climate Action has urged Australia to commit to cut methane.?Biden was pushing for an alliance at the Glasgow summit to limit global methane emissions by 30% from 2020 levels by the end of the decade, but the Australian government refused to sign on.?The Nationals had insisted there should be no methane cuts as part of the party’s negotiations with the Liberals to land a 2050 net zero target.?Joyce the only way to reduce methane by 30% by 2030 would be “to go grab a rifle (and) go out and start shooting your cattle”.?But the Farmers for Climate Action chief executive, Fiona Davis, said the methane pledge was not about “agriculture or cows” but about protecting the gas industry.?“This is about the government defending gas,” she told the Rural Network’s Facebook Live event.?

GREEN PROJECTS AND INITIATIVES

World's biggest solar and storage project proposed for South Australia (RenewEconomy):? What is being claimed as the world’s biggest solar and storage project – a 300MW facility with 3.6GWh of storage – has been proposed for South Australia by the Dutch-based solar developer Photon Energy, using Australian technology developed by RayGen.?Photon said in a media release on Wednesday that it had secured 1,200 hectares of land for what it said would be the biggest solar and storage project in the world, beating the current biggest at the Ouarzazate solar thermal facility in Morocco.?It did not identify where the land was secured.?“We are very excited to be developing this innovative and globally significant solar energy storage project in South Australia,” said Michael Gartner, the chief technology officer of Photon Energy and head of its Australian operations.?“The enviable solar resource and need for energy storage due to high penetration of renewables in this region is a perfect match for RayGen’s technology.”?Of course, the Photon project won’t be the biggest solar and storage projects in the world if the Sun Cable project in the Northern Territory goes ahead. That project envisages up to 20GW of solar PV and up to 42GWh of battery storage.?

NSW government seeks offers fore renewable hydrogen hubs (RenewEconomy):? In the wake of its “overwhelming” response to a call for wind and solar and pumped hydro project proposals, the New South Wales Liberal government has now opened an Expressions of Interest (EOI) for a renewable hydrogen hub.?The NSW government unveiled its green hydrogen strategy last month ,which included a promise of $3 billion in incentives which will hopefully drive $80 billion worth of investment.?The promise of up to $3 billion in incentives comes on top of an already committed $70 million to develop NSW hydrogen hubs in the Illawarra and the Hunter.?“Australia has an opportunity to be an energy superpower, New South Wales will lead the country with this hydrogen strategy,” said newly elected NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet, speaking in October.?“Our major trading partners see hydrogen as part of their energy future, this state has the skills, infrastructure and renewable energy resources to compete globally in this new industry.”?

No "big bang" as ESB confirms rethink on CoalKeeper design (RenewEconomy):? A suite of electricity market reforms designed to guide Australia’s transition to renewable energy has been approved by the federal government, but with the key concession that some of the recommendations – namely the controversial “CoalKeeper” capacity mechanism – needs more work.?The Energy Security Board on Monday said that National Cabinet had endorsed its Post-2025 reform recommendations for changes needed to the National Electricity (NEM) to integrate small and large scale renewable generation into the system.?“Following the agreement from Energy Ministers in late September, this Cabinet endorsement paves the way for further design development with stakeholders to ensure the NEM is fit for purpose up to 2025 and beyond,” the statement said.?But the ESB also stressed that some of the recommendations required “further detailed design” – in particular, it said, state and territory energy ministers had requested further work on a capacity mechanism.???

First stage of Mt Isa solar farm gets green light after supply deal with zinc miner (RenewEconomy):? The first stage of a proposed 88MW solar farm near the mining city of Mt Isa is to begin construction after the developer, APA Group, landed a long term off-take agreement with a nearby zinc miner.?The 44MW first stage of the Mica Creek solar farm will partially replace the recently closed fossil fuel generator of the same name, and is the first big plunge into solar for one of the country’s biggest remote networks. (It is not connected to the main grid, but might be if the Copperstring 2.0 transmission link is built.?APA, one of Australia’s biggest energy infrastructure companies, which lost out on its $10 billion bid for network operator AusNet, said on Monday a 15-year contract had been signed zinc miner MMG Dugald River.?The zinc mining company expects to slash its emissions by one third through the solar contract, and reduce its electricity costs. Mt Isa grid customers have been hit badly in recent times by the soaring cost of gas.??