Plug in and go

Manly Daily
Saturday 21/6/2008 Page: 7

AUSTRALIA'S first plug-in hybrid electric vehicle was unveiled by University of Technology Sydney and the green development company Szencorp. The converted Toyota Prius can be charged directly from a household power point and runs on electricity alone for up to 30km. The Prius was fitted with extra batteries for greater storage and a power socket so it could be charged directly from the power grid.

Researchers say it represents the next major technological change and follows close on the heels of Toyota's news that it will soon begin production of hybrid cars in Australia. Using electricity to power the car costs as little as a quarter of the price of petrol-powered motoring. The university's Institute for Sustainable Futures project - Plug-in power... the converted Prius.

Director Chris Dunstan said the model could offer not only much lower fuel bills but also the flexibility of storing wind power and solar energy at times of excess generation supply and feeding the stored energy back to the grid at times of high demand. "Plug-in hybrid cars have the potential to revolutionise not only how we drive but how we generate and use electricity in our homes and workplaces," Mr Dunstan said.

"This car heralds a not-too-distant future where householders will charge up their cars from solar panels on their roof and then pump surplus power from their car back into the grid on days of high peak power demand." If charged using renewable energy, it can dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as it can run on electricity for more than 30km, the average daily commute of many Australian motorists.

For longer trips, it simply switches back to normal hybrid operation. Mr Dunstan said the conversion was commissioned by Szencorp and undertaken by the university's Institute for Sustainable Futures and Faculty of Engineering with help from Sydney technology entrepreneur Stan Baker.

This project illustrates how the research skills in Australia's universities can be used in partnership with industry and government in grappling with the challenges of sustainable power and transport," he said. In continuing research into these models, the Institute for Sustainable Futures and the UTS faculty of engineering will be collaborating with a major Australian electricity utility on integrating plug in vehicles into the electricity grid."

Carbon compo 1$1.6bn' Families need protection from emissions trading

Daily Telegraph
Monday 23/6/2008 Page: 10

THE Rudd Government faces a massive payout of more than $1.6 billion a year to families, to offset rising energy and fuel prices under a new emissions trading system (ETS). Annual payments of about $500 million alone will be needed to protect the poor and the aged from a projected spike in electricity and gas prices.

A landmark CSIRO study, to be released today, reveals the high costs of going green and comes just weeks before the Government releases a crucial discussion paper on carbon trading. The study also finds an emissions trading system to be introduced from 2010 will raise more than $8 billion in additional revenue for Canberra. This will give the Government plenty of financial scope to deliver tax cuts and other payments to soften the blow of rising weekly bills.

The CSIRO report, commissioned for the Climate Institute Australia, found average families will face price rises of up to $10 a week for electricity, gas and petrol. If the Government wants to compensate families on average incomes, it will have to pay out up to $336 million by 2015, rising to $557 million by 2020. But, with struggling families battling to contain rising petrol prices, the Government will be under pressure to extend payments to most families.

This could see the Government paying out $1.7 billion in compensation by 2015, rising to $1.9 billion by 2025. The CSIRO report argues that "deep cuts in greenhouse emissions" are possible in Australia without reducing living standards. "Well-designed policy measures can protect low and middle-income households from potential short-run declines in energy affordability," it states.

The carbon trading scheme will start within two years as the centrepiece of Kevin Rudd's commitment to curb damaging greenhouse gases. Under the "cap and trade" scheme, heavy polluters will have to buy permits - increasing the incentive on business to embrace low-emission technologies. Higher energy costs are inevitable, with low income families particularly vulnerable.

The CSIRO report says a yearly payment of $185 by 2015 "would fully insulate low-income households from the impact of very high carbon prices on household energy consumption."

For low income families, concerns about the increased costs of energy and other goods and services are real," said Climate Institute Australia policy director Erwin Jackson, adding they could be overcome with "a fair and effective distribution of the multi-billion dollar bonus to government coffers provided by the ETS."

Windfall raises hope for B&B

Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday 19/6/2008 Page: 27

Babcock and Brown may get as much as $US3 billion ($3.2 billion) for its European wind power assets, helping it to reduce a debt burden that triggered a 50 per cent slump in its market value.

First round offers for the energy projects of Babcock and Brown's Wind Partners fund were due on June 16, said three people with knowledge of the plan. The Spanish utility Union Fenosa is understood to be among the companies and infrastructure funds that submitted bids.

Union Fenosa was following the process as part of its strategy to expand in renewable energy at home and abroad. Another Spanish company, Iberdrola SA, is also interested, said a spokeswoman for the company in Madrid yesterday. RWE, Germany's second largest utility, may also be in the market. An RWE spokesman, Konrad Boecker, in Essen, declined to comment last night on whether the company would bid.

B&B shares jumped 16 per cent yesterday on optimism that a sale might help satisfy bankers that the company and its funds can cut a combined debt that Credit Suisse Group estimates at $46 billion. Its bankers could force early repayment of $2.8 billion of Babcock's debt if its market value stays at current levels.

B&B shares rose 95c to close at $6.88, leaving its market value below the $2.5 billion level that would give the banks the right to recall the $2.8 billion early and force asset sales at the end of a four-month review period. Babcock Wind, 9 per cent owned by the troubled company, gained 0.6 per cent to $1.65.

'As long as Babcock is taking proactive action to reduce debt it's heading in the right direction," said White Funds Management's Angus Gluskie. "The company can survive, and investors will have to ride this out." Jonathan Mott, an analyst at UBS, estimated the sale of the European wind assets would have a "significant" impact on B&B's business, adding up to $300 million to net profit this year, according to a June 13 note.

B&B's chief executive, Phil Green, joins rivals including Allco Finance Group in struggling to manage debt and selling assets since the seizure on global credit markets. Allco, down 93 per cent in Sydney trading this year, said on Tuesday it would raise $165 million from the sale of California's largest wind power project to help repay $935 million of debt.

Babcock, Australia's second largest securities firm behind Macquarie Capital Group, said on Monday it expected first bids this week, and was confident it would sell the European wind assets by the third quarter of this year.

Babcock Wind said in February it might sell ventures in Europe, including the Enersis business in Portugal, to benefit from increased valuations for projects not reflected in its share price in Australia. The company owns about 830 megawatts of wind energy generation capacity in Europe. It has hired Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan Chase to manage the sale.

Solar stopped

Northern Star
Thursday 19/6/2008 Page: 2

IN A report for the Co-operative Research Centre for Coal in Sustainable Development, CSIRO energy technology researchers in 2005 predicted that the cost of electricity from concentrated solar thermal plants would be competitive with coal-fired generation in five to seven years. The report was suppressed by the Howard Government, while hundreds of millions of dollars were allocated to so-called 'clean coal' research. As a result, Australian solar thermal initiatives were driven overseas.

Delicate turbine maneuver a success

Border Mail
Thursday 19/6/2008 Page: 3

ONE millimetre is all a giant tower crane had to play with in the act of lowering a 24-tonne turbine into place at Bogong Power Station yesterday. The precision placement took just 20 minutes to complete but more than four days of preparation. It was a critical milestone for the $250million project that is now on track to generating its first electricity in less than 12 months.

An AGL project spokesman said the second turbine would be lifted into place in weeks. "These milestones are critical, if they slip we jeopardise the end date of the whole project," he said. "That was the first of two, the second expected to be here in the first week of July. "But as it stands we are on track for first generation in June next year and the project being completed by September." The turbine was manufactured in China and brought straight from Melbourne dock to the power station.

The AGL spokesman said there was no room for error in yesterday's operation. "it didn't take long to load but tour days' preparation for the foundations and it has to be positioned with accuracies of less than 1mm," he said A 45-tonne tower crane was used to load the turbine. "We had to use a tower crane similar to those on high rise sites," he said. AGL's 140Mw hydro power station on Lake Guy, between Mount Beauty and Falls Creek, is the biggest addition to the Kiewa hydro scheme since the 1960s.

Bligh's bright idea for Qld schools

Daily Advertiser
Monday 23/6/2008 Page: 46

SOLAR panels will be fitted onto the roofs of all Queensland state schools in a $60 million solar energy initiative. Premier Anna Bligh yesterday launched the program, labelled the first of its kind in Australia, as part of the government's commitment to fight climate change. Ten schools will be the first to take part when the plan takes form next month, with solar panels and energy-efficient bulbs to be installed.

Circuit timers to turn off nonessential power at night and "smart meters", which monitor energy use will be part of the package. Ms Bligh said all 1251 public schools in Queensland would be fully kitted out over the next three years. She said the initiative was about harnessing "the power of the sun" and teaching school students about their environmental obligations.

"As well as growing the solar industry, this initiative offers a great opportunity for our young people to learn about this transforming technology and what they, and their school communities, can do to help combat climate change," she said. Each solar panel would reduce a school's electricity bill by around $800 each year, Ms Blight said.

"(It) will reduce energy consumption across all state schools by a total of 13 per cent," she said. Ms Bligh said the $60 million outlay would be recovered in the longterm savings the solar panels, and other measures, generated. "In a state famous for its sunshine, it makes sense to invest in this renewable technology," she said. "I want Queensland to lead the pack to be the solar state of Australia." She said the state government would look at implementing similar initiatives in other sectors, including state hospitals, galleries and stadiums.

Bligh's bright idea for Qld schools

Daily Advertiser
Monday 23/6/2008 Page: 46

SOLAR panels will be fitted onto the roofs of all Queensland state schools in a $60 million solar energy initiative. Premier Anna Bligh yesterday launched the program, labelled the first of its kind in Australia, as part of the government's commitment to fight climate change. Ten schools will be the first to take part when the plan takes form next month, with solar panels and energy-efficient bulbs to be installed.

Circuit timers to turn off nonessential power at night and "smart meters", which monitor energy use will be part of the package. Ms Bligh said all 1251 public schools in Queensland would be fully kitted out over the next three years. She said the initiative was about harnessing "the power of the sun" and teaching school students about their environmental obligations.

"As well as growing the solar industry, this initiative offers a great opportunity for our young people to learn about this transforming technology and what they, and their school communities, can do to help combat climate change," she said. Each solar panel would reduce a school's electricity bill by around $800 each year, Ms Blight said.

"(It) will reduce energy consumption across all state schools by a total of 13 per cent," she said. Ms Bligh said the $60 million outlay would be recovered in the longterm savings the solar panels, and other measures, generated. "In a state famous for its sunshine, it makes sense to invest in this renewable technology," she said. "I want Queensland to lead the pack to be the solar state of Australia." She said the state government would look at implementing similar initiatives in other sectors, including state hospitals, galleries and stadiums.

Retain MRET, urges union

Australian
Monday 23/6/2008 Page: 2

THE coal workers union has written to Climate Change Minister Penny Wong urging her to stick with the Government's policy for a Mandatory Renewable Energy Target against a rising tide of advice that the emissions trading regime could make it superfluous.

The MRET, which requires 20 per cent of energy to come from renewable sources by 2020, is intended as a way of boosting renewable technologies to commercial scale in the medium term, while the price imposed on carbon is still so low that they would not be otherwise competitive.

But both the Productivity Commission and the government's adviser on climate change policies, Roger Wilkins, have suggested the Government would be better off relying on the Emissions Trading Scheme alone, rather than such "market distorting" initiatives.

Now the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) has written to Senator Wong urging her to ignore this advice, arguing that a low initial price on carbon would encourage energy supply from gas, but do nothing to develop technologies that were necessary to deliver the tar deeper cuts in emissions that will have to be made in the future.

If we remove the renewable target it will result in a substitution of gas for wind power and other forms of renewable energy," wrote CFMEU mining and energy division general president Tony Maher.

"While that will result in a lowering of our average emissions it does not help to prepare the economy and the energy supply industry for the medium to long term." Mr Maher said the Government might even need to be more interventionist than the present plans for the MRET assume, assigning specific targets for emerging renewable technology such as geothermal and solar thermal, which would otherwise be squeezed out by proven and cheaper renewable technologies like wind power.

Mr Maher's industry does not stand to benefit from the MRET, but is lobbying Government to set up a separate target for electricity generated with Carbon Capture and Storage technology. The Government has not responded to this suggestion. As The Australian reported recently, Mr Wilkins, who is reviewing Labor's climate change policies to complement an Emissions Trading Scheme, has questioned whether the MRET is the best way to force a shift to renewable technology.

His comments came after the Productivity Commission also questioned the wisdom of an MRET operating alongside an emissions trading regime. And the Government's climate change adviser, Ross Garnaut, has emphasised the need to phase out an MRET quickly, once an Emissions Trading Scheme is up and running. The federal Opposition wants the MRET to be replaced with a Clean Energy Target, which would include clean coal technology and gas, but the CFMEU does not support this approach.

Big push for clean hydrogen energy

Courier Mail
Thursday 19/6/2008 Page: 73

Fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas will continue to meet base power generation needs for Australian industry and domestic electricity users but the nation needs to speed up its research efforts into a key alternative, hydrogen energy, Australia's peak group of scientists says.

A report by the Australian Academy of Science finds that while homegrown research into hydrogen energy is a "minor contributor" to the field, Australian scientists are able to make big contributions to the development of associated technologies like hydrogen storage materials and Carbon Capture and Storage.

However, the report says much of the hydrogen energy research and development going on is lacking in "critical mass", apart from clean coal technologies and hydrogen storage. hydrogen is attracting big interest worldwide as the price of oil soars and nations are under pressure to cut their greenhouse gas emissions. It is touted as a possible longterm, renewable source of clean energy for fuel-cell systems. When fuelled by pure hydrogen and oxygen these cells will produce electricity with water as the only chemical by-product.

Experts from around the world have been discussing hydrogen's potential as a largescale energy source at a conference in Brisbane this week. The academy's report says hydrogen could come into its own as a widespread energy alternative within 50 years but only scientists can meet big challenges such a economical storage options, reliable fuel-cells and public acceptance.

"The different national priorities for hydrogen energy research and development depend on each country's other energy sources, especially fossil fuels, and strategies to ensure security of supply and to combat climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions," the report says. It says Australia enjoys lowcost power based largely on its vast reserves of coal and gas.

"Not surprisingly, therefore, early federal and state government initiatives have been directed towards more efficient utilisation of coal and gas, but there is also support for the development of alternative renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and geothermal." However, it says Australian scientists produced less than 2 per cent of the world's hydrogen publications since 1980, making the country 16th in the world in terms of hydrogen research.

The Australian Research Council invested nearly $23 million in research projects and fellowships devoted to hydrogen- related energy. Last year, the Queensland Government signed an agreement with the US state of South Carolina to jointly develop and commercialise hydrogen energy technologies. However, the state's investment in hydrogen research pales against the $900 million it has devoted to demonstrating clean coal technology.

Bridgewater's day in the sun approaches

Bendigo Advertiser
Thursday 19/6/2008 Page: 3

A TRIAL power station that will set the model for northern Victoria's solar future could be feeding power back into the grid within months. The $10 million trial development site outside Bridgewater, which will test and refine the technology, is progressing to schedule according to Melbourne alternative energy pioneer Solar Systems. The news comes as Premier John Brumby visited some of the world's leading solar facilities in Nevada in the US and announced the State Government's intentions to build multiple solar power stations in northern Victoria.

Solar Systems chief Dave Holland said Government plans for expansion in solar energy meshed with the company's long-term plans in northern Victoria. "We didn't go into this to only build the one station." he said. "We have plans to build dozens of these." Mr Holland said the $10 million Bridgewater station - which should be ready to produce power well before Christmas - would refine the technology for the company's far bigger $420 million north-west project.

Five potential sites, including Kerang and Mildura, have been listed for the project. Factors influencing the choice include reliability of sunshine and closeness to big users. Federal and State Governments have committed $129 million to the project, in which Solar Systems is a partner with TRUEnergy. It is expected to create up to 950 jobs. When finished in September, the 30-hectare Bridgewater site, with its field of mirrors and 75-metre tower, will give a glimpse of how the larger site will look.

Cost parity on the way

Adelaide Advertiser
Thursday 19/6/2008 Page: 61

SOLAR energy will cost the same as power from coal, natural gas and nuclear plants in about a decade, a report released yesterday suggests. By then, the price parity could propel solar adoption so that it accounts for 10 per cent of U.S. electricity generation by 2025. "Solar prices are falling as the solar industry scales," said Alisa Gravitz, executive director of Co-op America, a non-profit organisation advocating green economic solutions.

"For the first time in history, cost-competitive solar power is now within the planning horizon of every utility." The Utility Solar Assessment Study, produced by Co-op America and the Clean Edge research firm, projects that the cost of solar will fall from an average of $US5.50-$US7 for a peak watt today to $US1.43- $US1.62 per average peak watt by 2025. A peak watt is the number of watts output when a solar panel is illuminated under test conditions.

At the same time, fuel costs and capital costs to build traditional power plants will rise. Ron Pernick, Clean Edge's managing director and a coauthor of the study, said progress will come only with concentrated efforts by solar companies, utilities and regulators. And with lots of money - from $US450 billion-$US560 billion between now and 2025. he said. At the moment, the U.S. generates less than 0.1 per cent of its electricity from solar power. If the study's projections come true, by 2025 about 8 per cent of electricity will come from photovoltaic systems on roofs and in small solar fields.

Confidential report warns our green targets in doubt

Adelaide Advertiser
Thursday 19/6/2008 Page: 3

THE RANN Government's green credentials have been called into question over doubts it will meet energy efficiency targets it has set for its own buildings. An unreleased report shows the Government will fall short of its goal of reducing energy use among its assets by 2014 if current progress is maintained. The SA Government Energy Use Annual Report 2006-07, which documents the Government's progress against energy efficiency targets for its buildings, has not yet been signed off by State Cabinet.

However, part of the report, sighted by The Advertiser, shows if the rate of reduction in energy use in Government buildings is maintained, a reduction of just more than 20 per cent was expected by 2014 - about 5 percentage points shy of the 25 per cent target. The graph sighted is based on an 8.78 per cent reduction in energy use to the end of 2006-07, compared with 2000-01.

This figure is a large increase from the 1.93 per cent improvement cited in the previous year's annual report, however, it is understood accounting changes could have impacted the latest results. Members of the energy efficiency industry are understood to be concerned about the Government prioritising form over function when it comes to being clean and green.

While high-profile projects such as the Adelaide airport solar project and the recently announced $8 million State Government injection into a solar power project at the Wayville Showground are deemed useful, experts are concerned energy conservation measures such as energy efficiency and co-generation projects are being overlooked.

A spokesman for Energy Minister Patrick Conlon said the Government had seen the energy use report, but could not release it until it had passed through Cabinet. "We have set ambitious targets and we are making very good progress," he said. "There is a great deal of construction announced or under way which will take big steps towards the 25 per cent target. "I am always happy to compare our green record with that of any Government." Mr Conlon's spokesman said the report should pass through Cabinet in the next few weeks, at which time it would be released.

Renewable 40 energy 'will be cheapest in long run'

Canberra Times
Tuesday 17/6/2008 Page: 5

Rising fossil fuel prices mean renewable energy will provide cheaper electricity in the long run, according to a Greenpeace report. The report, Energy (R)evolution, which was issued yesterday and uses modelling by Greenpeace and Canberra energy expert Dr Hugh Saddler, also calls for coal-fired power stations to begin being phased out and for gas-powered electricity to be used as a transition to renewable resources.

Co-author Julien Vincent said burning fossil fuels left Australia vulnerable to their increasing prices as well as "choking the atmosphere with greenhouse gases." "Unlike fossil fuels, the cost of harnessing the power of the wind and the sun will never go up," lie said. The report's modelling said electricity supply costs would triple from $11.7 billion a year to $30.9 billion a year in 2020 tinder "business as usual."

The Greenpeace plan, which involves cutting usage as well as shifting to renewable resources and which takes into account costs imposed by an Emissions Trading Scheme, would cost about $15 billion. "Increasing energy efficiency and shifting energy supply to renewable resources in the long term leads to falls in electricity prices. By 2030, wind will be a cheaper torte of electricity than coal," the report said. Costs would, though, rise in the short term, before dropping as the technologies became more established.

Greenpeace wants the Government to begin phasing out coalfired power stations by imposing an immediate moratorium on extending stations or building new ones. Capacity would be reduced by 75 per cent by 2020 and coal generated power would no longer be in use by 2030, tinder its blueprint.

"A combination of renewable energy being deployed at a large scale, aggressive energy efficiency measures in the short-term and the use of gas as a transitional fuel, results in overall fossil fuel use to diminish rapidly... By 2050, more sustained growth in solar concentrating thermal and geothermal, combined with smaller but still significant increases in solar [photovoltaic] and wind provide a suite of renewable energy technologies that provide over 70 per cent of Australia's electricity," the report said.

Australia generates 9.2 per cent of its electricity from renewable resources at present, and the report said this ought be increased to 40 per cent by 2020. Much energy would be produced locally, instead of being distributed through high-voltage transmission grids, in 2050, although "large offshore wind farms, geothermal energy and concentrating solar power plants in the sunbelt regions will... have an important role to play."

Greenpeace said its plan would mean greenhouse gas emissions would drop 37 per cent between 2005 and 2020, and 65 per cent in 2050. The organisation is calling for legislation requiring Australia's greenhouse gas emissions be cut to 40 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020. This would require emissions to peak within two years.

It also wants 40 per cent of electricity to come from renewable energy by 2020 and an Emissions Trading Scheme that covers at least 70 per cent of Australia's emissions, "omitting only agriculture, land use and forestry unless robust measurements of these sectors an be achieve in the future."

It includes a national energy efficiency target of a 2 per cent cut in power use every year. This could be done by increasing energy efficiency standards of new buildings and refits, and by retrofitting solar hot water systems to homes and offices. Transport energy use could be cut by moving freight from road to rail. The report backs calls for a highspeed train between Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne.

Throwing light on our solar future

Ballarat Courier
Tuesday 17/6/2008 Page: 2

SOLAR maps of Victoria and Queensland will be developed to identify where large-scale solar power plants could be built in both states. The project, similar to wind mapping, will pinpoint the best sites for producing solar thermal energy based on landscape and access to the power grid. Victorian Premier John Brumby and Queensland Premier Anna Bligh yesterday announced a joint $680,000 for the solar atlases after they attended a solar business forum in the United States.

Mr Brumby said early investigations showed Victoria had the potential for a solar industry, particularly in the state's north-west, the site of a planned $420 million solar plant. "solar power is a potentially limitless resource, crucial to tackling climate change and to meeting our energy needs into the future," he said. The alliance between Victoria and Queensland will allow us to pool our resources to help ensure both states capture the benefits from establishing a solar thermal industry in Australia."