System sheds light on renewable forecasts

Australian
Tuesday 30/11/2010 Page: 39

A hybrid forecasting system that integrates solar and wind power sources could make predictions for renewable energy schemes more accurate. Being developed at Central Queensland University, the system could overcome the unpredictable nature and dependence on weather changes of solar and wind power systems.

By integrating and forecasting the two power sources in a hybrid forecasting system, many of the problems could be resolved, according to CQU researcher Rahat Hossain. Mr Hossain has been working to develop a more robust hybrid forecasting system, which can provide accurate renewable energy predictions. "If you use these two things (wind and solar) in an integrated way, then it is a consistent and more correct prediction", he said.

Australia and, in particular, the subtropical regions are considered to be in one of the best positions to use a hybrid forecasting system, which would be unique in predicting energy from wind and solar sources combined. It is hoped the system could lead to a more sustainable future with less reliance on coal-fired energy.

Mr Hossain, a PhD student at CQU's Power Engineering Research Group within the Institute for Resource Industries and Sustainability (IRIS), is using historical solar and wind data from the CSIRO collected over the past 10 years. The initial stages had involved smaller-scale tests to predict wind speed and solar radiation individually, and these tests had almost 95% accuracy.

"The next target will be energy conversion from the wind speed and also energy conversion from the solar radiation", he said. "Then we will merge those things in a single system". The model would be developed in such a way that, with minor modifications in the coding, it would be able to perform the hybrid forecasting, ranging from hourly to daily within the same platform. A trial energy station is being planned in Central Queensland as part of the project.

Australia has committed to sourcing renewable energy for 20% of its energy by 2020. Many other nations, such as Germany and Denmark, are further advanced in renewable energy. Wind energy is one of the lowest priced renewable energy technologies.

The cost of producing energy from solar is also becoming cheaper following advances in solar panel technology. "You find when wind is blowing normally there is no sun and when there is a huge amount of sun, there is no wind", Mr Hossain said. "If you can merge these two things, what will happen is a consistent or continuous supply."

Farmers who lack rain turn to wind

West Australian
Monday 29/11/2010 Page: 18

Spattered across the coffee coloured landscape in a seemingly random pattern, 111 neat piles of blades, engines and 80m-high turbine stands are waiting to be constructed. Across 18,000ha on 14 farms near Merredin, the $750 million Collgar wind farm, which is understood to be WAs biggest wind farm and the second biggest in Australia, is in the final stages of completion. Amid one of the driest years on record, farmers are turning to farming of a different kind, where money is made without starting the harvester.

While grain yields have been low across WA's increasingly drying wheat-belt, wind strength never abates across the flat escarpment. With three turbines already put up this week and another each day for the next 108 days, the wind farm will start generating enough carbon-free electricity to supply milling projects, businesses and homes in Kalgoorlie, Yilgarn and Southern Cross by April.

Each 44m-long blade looks like a giant surf board fin. They were transported one by one by truck to Merredin, 260km east of Perth. Collgar wind farm executive officer Alistair Craib said 12 farmers across 14 properties had signed a 30-year lease receiving an annual rent and compensation for disturbed crop land. He said the carbon emissions expended to create the wind farm would be repaid 40 times during its life.

Farming brothers Glenn and Mark Crees run a 8000ha wheat and sheep farm and are reaping a "substantial" windfall. "It's well worth our effort to do it. The only drawback is loss of land but we don't lose much land, maybe 20-30 hectares, and it's mostly unproductive land", Glenn said. Mr Crees said the town had also benefited, with the employment of at least 100 local men.

Sun and wind leave coal power out in the cold

Canberra Times
Saturday 27/11/2010 Page: 7

A combination of solar, thermal and wind energies could power Australia as cheaply as coal-fired power and generate more jobs, says one of the world's top solar researchers. Australian solar technology pioneer Professor David Mills said this new, flexible energy system would also eliminate the need to rely on large power infrastructure to generate baseload power, or daily electricity needs. "Baseload doesn't need to be part of this system, it's out of the equation", he said.

At a three-day national solar conference in Canberra next week. Professor Mills will present the results of a three-year energy study analysing hourly data for energy use across the United States. The breakthrough study shows wind and solar combined could provide 100% of the country's electricity needs, with wind acting as a back-up to solar power shortfalls during winter and at night.

Professor Mills, one of three scientists working on the US study, is keynote speaker at the Australian Solar Energy Society conference dinner at Parliament House next week. "I think what we've found will blow a lot of people away", he said. "Everyone says you need baseload capacity, which they assume somehow makes coal-fired electricity cheaper, and other forms of energy more expensive.

"What we are suggesting is a new paradigm. Baseload does not exist in this new scenario, but it hasn't simply been replaced by a another form of renewable energy-generated baseload. What we're talking about is a completely new model a new system of energy combinations with some storage capacity".

Professor Mills said the technologies required to build and run this system already existed. "They're not future technologies, they're already here, so we can do this", he said. The former Sydney University solar power engineer left Australia four years ago to set up a solar power company in California after failing to attract support from the Howard government for his world-first solar thermal technology.

Professor Mills has since sold his successful US start-up company to French energy conglomerate Areva as its new solar division. He recently returned to live in Sydney, "more or less in retirement mode". Professor Mills has spent more than 30 years developing solar technologies which are now in use throughout the world. He said Australia's governments seemed unable to comprehend the enormous potential of solar technologies to provide thousands of new jobs in installation and maintenance. "These are big enterprises and potentially big employers, providing cleaner and safer jobs than coal", he said.

Following yesterday's first meeting of the Gillard Government's business roundtable on climate change, Climate Change and Energy Efficiency minister Greg Combet said energy security remained "a very important consideration in establishing a carbon price mechanism". He reaffirmed the Government's commitment to provide financial compensation to the electricity generation sector when a carbon tax or trading scheme was adopted.

$750m power station to meet summer demand

Adelaide Advertiser
Friday 26/11/2010 Page: 8

A GAS-FIRED electricity power station will be built near Mannum to help meet peak demand over summer months. The State Government today will approve construction of the Cherokee Power Station at Tepko. The $750 million project would create 400 jobs, Industry and Trade Minister Tom Koutsantonis said.

"This is a major infrastructure project with enormous benefit not just for the Mid Murray, but for the whole state", he said yesterday. "South Australia's electrical loads are increasing in line with the state's economic growth and prosperity. "Cherokee Power Station will deliver a cleaner source of power to cater for the increased demands this will place on the electricity grid, which is currently reliant on coal".

The power station will be built by the Tungkillo Power Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of asset management company Investec Bank. Tepko was chosen as the site so power could be fed into the Tungkillo sub-station and the existing Tungkillo-Tailem Bend electricity transmission line. Energy Minister Patrick Conlon said the power station would reach a maximum generating capacity of 1000MWs by 2021.

"Cherokee Power Station will be a peaking station - which means it will kick in at times of peak demand", he said. "On the completion of its final stage, the facility will be capable of meeting up to 25% of the state's peak demand "The first stage of the project will create 250MW of generating capacity at an estimated cost of $200 million and is scheduled to come on line in 2013".

Investec Bank's head of project and infrastructure investment Mark Schneider said the company had found South Australia "an ideal place in which to invest". "We have undertaken extensive consultation and negotiation with landholders surrounding the proposed development site", Mr Schneider said yesterday. "We are confident the local community is right behind the (power) project".

ACT lab proves it pays to go in windmill punching

Sunday Canberra Times
Sunday 21/11/2010 Page: 12

TECHNOLOGY developed in Canberra has made local company Windlab Systems a world expert in wind farming and one of Australia's fastest growing businesses. When CSIRO scientist Keith Ayotte started developing a wind modelling tool with colleague Nathan Steggel, wind farms were still in their infancy in Australia. But in the past four years company turnover has grown by 100% annually almost the same pace as the industry itself in Australia, which has seen the total installed capacity of wind power nearly doubled in the past five years.

The growth helped the global wind power development company overcome uncertainty around a carbon price and the global financial crisis to grow from a small business to a global enterprise, with 33 employees and annual revenue of $9 million Undaunted, the pair raised $10 million at the height of the economic downturn to develop wind maps that could quickly and easily identify potential wind farm sites based on weather data.

Windlab Systems's success also earned Dr Ayotte a spot in the national finals of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year awards in Sydney this week. "Being an Entrepreneur of the Year finalist means I get to learn things from lots of other people", he said. "As a scientist you make a habit of learning from anyone you can usually that is a fairly broad spectrum". Dr Ayotte said the company succeeded because it started from a solid base. "We've been successful because we started off with some good technology and then we found some good people", he said.

"I'm proud that we went and built wind farms which are big projects and difficult to do we made something that worked". But the next challenge will be securing the company's global position. "We are absolutely looking at international expansion", Dr Ayotte said. "The financial crisis affected us a little bit, we have had to do some rationalisation in the US but it is generally business as usual. "Recruiting the right people to do the jobs in foreign markets is hard, so that's a challenge for the coming year".

Is baseload power necessary?

Business Spectator
Wednesday 24/11/2010 Page: 1

For years, David Mills, the eminent solar power technology developer, has dreamed of creating a new model for an energy system that does away with the conventional design of massive baseload infrastructure. Next week the newly-retired founder of solar thermal technology company Ausra (now owned by French nuclear giant Areva), and a former leading researcher at UNSW, will present that model.

Using hourly data for energy use of the entire United States economy in 2006, Mills will demonstrate how it could have been powered almost exclusively by wind and solar (with storage and the help of biofuels for aircraft and some biomass capacity for certain smelting operations).

The details of his findings, including capacity and costing estimations, will be released when he addresses the Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society's annual conference in Canberra next week. But in an exclusive interview with Climate Spectator, Mills gave a broad outline of his conclusions and suggested there was a surprisingly small difference in costs.

"Everyone says that you need flatline baseload capacity - such as coal or nuclear, or in some countries hydro - and build on that platform, and use load-following gas turbines", Mills said. "They assume that being baseload makes it cheaper, and all other things are more expensive.

"What we are suggesting is a new paradigm. The traditional paradigm of flatline baseload does not exist in this scenario, but you need to understand that the replacement for baseload power is not another baseload - it's a system of flexible and inflexible energy mechanisms based around wind and solar and other sources".

The study is an extension of an idea that Mills has held dear for some time. In 2005 he presented a talk in Canberra suggesting that solar plants with a "primitive" storage model could run the electricity grid in eastern Australia. Two years later, he did a similar study for California concluding that, based on hourly data for energy usage in 2006, solar could have carried well over 90% of the electricity load.

The latest study - completed with a former R&D specialist at Ausra, Wei Li Cheng, and a US Department of Energy analyst Phil Larochelle - looks at how solar and wind could handle the entire electricity needs for the US in the same year, and also looks at whether it could handle the entire energy needs for the country, including transport.

Interestingly, wind and solar account for around 50% each of the electricity supplies to handle summer demand and peaks, while more wind was used in winter. Such a system would require a capacity redundancy above peak demand, but would in fact be less than current systems. Mills says the study looked to test a number of different premises. The first premise was that there was enough solar and wind that, in combination, could run the US economy. There was.

The second was that solar and wind would be connected with a new electricity transmission system, using high voltage direct current (HVDC) lines for the spine of the network, which will allow more flows and result in considerably reduced transmission losses. These are the sort of networks being contemplated by the Desertec Foundation consortium founded by a group of large European industrial giants that are looking to source solar power from north Africa to provide some of Europe's energy needs.

Mills says China is installing more HVDC lines than any other country in the world - looking to link coal plants with the Three Gorges dam and wind and solar from the north and west of the country. "It very clear to see what they are doing and that it is a very good thing to do", he said.

Mills says the data used for his study came from 2006, and was based around technology that might be used in 2050, but exists now - even though its lack of scale makes current deployment expensive. "Its not technology that we don't have now. I didn't want people saying that it's future technology".

He says the model would need to be refined to be implemented, but it provides food for thought. He says it could easily apply to the Chinese and Australian economies, which also benefit from a population largely based on the eastern seaboard, western deserts (which can provide power later into the evening to the eastern consumers), and strong wind resources.

The Mills model will add to the considerable debate about the role of renewables - whether they are a "worthy" but annoying addition to the current network systems, or if they can assume a prominent role in powering economies. Mills notes the work of the Beyond Zero Emissions group, which outlined a highly contentious study into how Australia could go 100% renewable by 2020 - not so much to suggest it should be done, but that it could be done.

The German industrial giant Siemens has also produced a report entitled "Picture the Future", which suggested renewable energy could, by 2030, provide 70% of Australia's electricity needs, with half coming from solar - augmented by storage and a suite of installation across different time zones - and the rest made up of an equal share of wind and geothermal.

CBD Energy has a $40m wind at its back

Summaries - Australian Financial Review
Wednesday 24/11/2010 Page: 53

Renewable energy group CBD Energy has announced a solar equipment manufacturing deal with China's Tianwei Group, and would soon form a joint venture to examine the acquisition of around $40 million worth of wind farm development assets. wind farm assets in NSW and Victoria, if fully developed, could generate 1250MWs. The Australian Bureau of Agricultural Resource Economics says Australia had 1703MWs of wind power generation in 2009.

Hot rock tax doubts hurt low-carb plays

West Australian
Tuesday 23/11/2010 Page: 40

WA's fledgling geothermal industry is missing out on investment because of uncertainty about whether explorers are entitled to the same tax deductions that other mining and energy companies receive, an industry lobby group has claimed. Australian Geothermal Energy Association chief executive Susan Jeanes said investors were being disadvantaged for backing geothermal exploration instead of iron ore, oil or gas.

Under the existing tax regime, a company that spends money on exploration is entitled to a tax deduction for the amount it spends, either offset against a source of revenue or carried forward as a tax loss. But Ms Jeanes said it was unclear whether the relatively new field of geothermal exploration was covered. She has written to the Federal Government's mining tax policy transition group in the hope that new incentives being considered under the tax could resolve the problem.

"(The Income Tax Assessment Act) does not specifically recognise exploration for geothermal resources potentially resulting in a divergent and discriminatory taxation treatment relative to exploration for other resources", she said in the submission. "AGEA believes that this is inconsistent with the Australian Government's policies to encourage a rapid transition to a low carbon intensity energy supply". Geothermal energy better known as "hot rocks" uses water heated by the slow decay of naturally radioactive elements thousands of metres underground.

While it is better known in South Australia than in WA, the Barnett Government has taken some steps to back the emerging industry, including introducing a maiden geothermal acreage program. Federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson was unavailable for comment last night.

The Federal Government's now scrapped resource super profits tax had provided an exploration rebate that specifically included geothermal projects. However, the Federal Government has yet to reveal what if any exploration incentives will be included under the watered down mineral resources rent tax.

Carbon price 'no peril to economy'

Summaries - Australian Financial Review
Monday 22/11/2010 Page: 1

A study by Access Economics released yesterday found that a carbon price would have less effect on the Australian economy than the rising Australian dollar. Australia's gross domestic product (GDP) will have been slashed by 5%, according to the report, but the Federal Government's Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme would have only reduced GDP by 3%.

The Clean Energy Council commissioned study was delivered as the government attempts to introduce a carbon price and coincides with the first round table meeting on climate change. The meeting will be convened by Climate Change Minister Greg Combet and Treasurer Wayne Swan and will be attended by representatives from Origin Energy, AGL Energy, BHP Billiton, Woolworths, Qantas, Shell, Rio Tinto, Woodside Petroleum and BlueScope Steel.

Meanwhile Prime Minister Julia Gillard has likened the importance of the introduction of a carbon price to floating the dollar and reducing tariffs.

Parliament gridlock threat to geothermal industry

Adelaide Advertiser
Saturday 20/11/2010 Page: 90

THE fractured nature of the current Federal Parliament is the biggest threat to funding for Australia's geothermal industry, an Adelaide conference has been told. Senator Don Farrell, representing Energy Minister Martin Ferguson, said a lack of agreement on carbon pricing was likely to sap funding for the developing industry.

"As the last Parliament showed, even with the most determined approach it is very difficult to get consensus in the Federal Parliament on questions of carbon pricing (and) therefore emission reduction targets", he said. "I'm not sure that given the current state of Parliament - where the Government is both on a knife edge in the Lower House and in the minority in the Senate - that it is going to be very easy to achieve that goal. "That presents problems for this industry. The way you access finance for this industry is by a price on carbon, that's going to make your industry the most valuable in terms of interest from finance organisations".

Mr Farrell said South Australia remained a hothed for the industry, which provided a real prospect for "24/7 baseload renewable power". Yesterday's Australian Geothermal Energy Association conference was also told it had been a "frustrating year of inaction" for research and development incentives. KPMG partner Mathew Herring said there had been no new progress on funding incentives and there was an expectation that tax changes were likely to be delayed until next financial year.

"We were close to having a new research and development regime in place that would benefit the geothermal industry, but it's been a frustrating year", he said. "We don't know what's happening and there may be some good opportunities forgone". Mr Herring said changes proposed extending the turnover threshold for R&D expenditure from $5 million to $20 million but tightening the definition of R&D to reduce production-related claims. He said details of a $40 million emerging technology fund - together with associated $100 million in venture capital funding - were still uncertain.

Powered up for next two years

Adelaide Advertiser
Saturday 20/11/2010 Page: 49

RENEWABLE energy from catchments such as wind farms have pumped enough reserve power into the grid to safeguard Adelaide's supply through the next two summers. Australian Energy Market Operator spokesman Paul Bird said South Australia's supplies were more than ready for the peak period between mid-January and mid-March. "There is sufficient supply to meet demand and a reserve buffer for contingencies and other events", he said. "The increase is a result of the ongoing growth, especially in the past six months in the amount of wind farms in the state".

He said the outlook was so promising that he predicted a surplus for both this and the following, summer despite an increase in consumer demand. More wind power is generated in SA than in all other Australian states combined and wind farms provide about 20% of the state's power. Mr Bird, however, could not rule out a return to load shedding if extreme conditions hit, such as the 2009 heatwave, because of a surge in demand for power.

ETSA spokesman Paul Roberts said the utility had learnt from blackouts over the past few summers and was well equipped to handle any issues that arise. "Previous heat waves have brought to our attention some capacity issues that we are now aware of", Mr Roberts said. SA wind farms have pumped about 280MW into the grid during the past 18 months.

Infigen opts to pay later

Adelaide Advertiser
Friday 19/11/2010 Page: 66

WIND farm operator Infigen Energy's shares slumped yesterday after it told shareholders debt repayment was limiting cash flows available for dividends and business development. Infigen Energy expects to repay close to $100 million of its debt over the next two financial years instead of the previously forecast $200 million due to the rising dollar and lower energy prices. Shares closed 12% lower at 64¢ after the company's annual general meeting.

The company - still open to the sale of its US and German assets after failed efforts this year - is focusing on its Australian business to grow. Infigen Energy recently completed the expansion of its wind farm at Lake Bonney in SA and yesterday announced a $14 million expansion of its new Woodlawn Wind Farm in NSW. "We have a high quality pipeline of prospective new developments in Australia.

However, we will only commit to initiating new developments once we are able to secure attractive off-take arrangements and satisfy Infigen Energy's strict internal rate of return requirements", managing director Miles George said. Mr George said the company was in talks with potential partners to fund the wind projects. It has also partnered with Chinese solar panel maker SunTech for a slice of the Federal Government's $1.5 billion Solar Flagships program. He also called for "clear, stable and reliable policy settings that are not subject to constant change".

Investors say it’s time to act

Business Spectator
Wednesday 17/11/2010 Page: 1

It seems the world's leading investors are sick of not being listened to on the critical issue of climate change, and financing the transition to low-carbon technologies. And they've decided to do something about it. A group of 258 investors with $US15 trillion under management - or about one quarter of the globe's market capitalisation - have declared that they stand ready to invest in new technology and have implored governments to give them the mechanisms to do so.

They say that if governments are serious about their pledge to cap average global warming to a maximum of 2°C, then it is time to act and provide the investment climate that would unlock the trillions of dollars needed to achieve this. Chief among these, of course, is a carbon price strong enough to encourage that investment, as well a range of complementary measures to encourage investment in renewables and energy efficiency. It echoes similar comments in recent weeks by many of the world's largest industrial companies.

It's estimated that around $US500 billion a year is needed to help meet the 2°C target over the next decade, but the investment in 2009 reached little more than a third of that total, and in 2010 will barely scrape above $US200 billion - a big number but still $US300 billion short. Worse, the investors say, the world faces climate-related GDP losses of up to 20% by 2050 and severe risks to individual assets, and they want to protect their investment.

"Climate change may be out of vogue in Washington today, but it poses serious financial risks that are not going away and will only increase the longer we delay enacting sensible policies to transition to a low-carbon economy", said Jack Ehnes, the CEO of the California State Teachers' Retirement System, the second largest public pension fund in the US with $US141 billion in assets. The group includes 33 investors that come under the Australian-based Investor Group on Climate Change, including AMP, AXA, Colonial and BT, which has called for Australia to implement a carbon price.

The statement highlights the fact that, while more was invested in renewable technologies on a global scale than in fossil fuel technologies in the past year, Australia anticipates little more than $2 billion a year to be invested in renewables over the next decade, while an estimated $50 billion will go to supporting and expanding existing infrastructure in the next five years alone. "Investment flows to countries with regulatory certainty and strong returns. It's as simple as that", said Frank Pegan, the chair of the IGCC and CEO of Catholic Super. "Australia should implement a carbon price as soon as possible to attract investment and avoid being last in the low-carbon race".

The group's statement is clear about what's at stake: "Investors are concerned with the risks presented by climate change to regional and global economies and to individual assets. At the same time, investors are interested in the large potential economic opportunities that the transition to a low-carbon economy presents. "Investors have a fiduciary responsibility that requires them to seek optimal, risk-adjusted returns on their investments. At present, in the absence of strong and stable policy frameworks, many low-carbon investment opportunities do not currently pass this test".

So they suggest that domestic policies include not just a carbon price (through a well designed carbon market) but frameworks to deliver renewable energy, energy efficiency and other low-carbon infrastructure - in short, the sort of complementary measures that have become a political football in Australia these past few week.

More specifically, the group recommends short, mid and long-term greenhouse gas reduction targets, policies to accelerate the deployment of energy efficiency, renewables, green buildings, clean vehicles and low carbon transport infrastructure, and the phasing out of fossil fuel subsidies - which the G20 has agreed to do but, like the Copenhagen Accord which sets the 2°C target, have yet to decide how to do it.

They also want strong action in the international arena, including defining of the mechanisms for the $100 billion a year to support mitigation and adaptation in the poorest countries, a rapid timeframe for a scheme to protect forests through the REDD mechanism, clarity on the future of international carbon markets such as the UN's Clean Development Mechanism, robust agreements on measurement, reporting and verification, and finally a clear commitment from Cancun to seal a binding international treaty in South Africa in 2011.

It notes that countries that have had strong policies that provide long-term certainty and enable credible mid-to long-term risk assessment have already managed to attract significant capital in low-carbon investment policies. But in other countries, frameworks have remained weak and uncertain (that could be Australia) or have been damaged by indication that strong policies will be retroactively scaled back in the face of the economic downturn (sounds like Spain).

Pegan notes that Australia should not be using the US deadlock as an excuse not to act, but should be paying more regard to the actions of its principle trading partners in Asia, where governments have been proactive and large industrial groups are retooling their businesses. Pegan says this gives a clearer picture of the future of climate change and energy investment trends.

This article first appeared on Climate Spectator on November 17.

Call for geothermal power subsidies

Age
Thursday 18/11/2010 Page: 5

AUSTRALIA risks being left behind in the development of geothermal power unless it introduces a subsidy to support the fledgling industry, an expert in the field warns. Jorg Baumgartner, chief executive of Bestec, a geothermal consultancy and drilling company, said geothermal power was advancing in countries such as Germany, France and even Indonesia because of established subsidies.

Dr Baumgartner, in Adelaide for the Australian Geothermal Energy Association's conference, said the take-up rate of geothermal in Germany had "increased 1000%" following the introduction of the Renewable Energy Act, which includes feed-in tariffs for renewables.

"The German government has made it clear that it doesn't want to be supporting geothermal power forever, but it is obvious that these projects need a subsidy to get going", he said. "Nuclear had subsidies to get going, coal did, all of them in fact. We need this, not forever but just until it gets off the ground. Countries like Australia that don't introduce subsidies will find it much harder".

Geothermal power uses heat from the Earth's core to generate hot water and steam, which is then brought to the surface to run turbines. Germany has about six geothermal projects feeding power into the grid. Dr Baumgartner is also an independent non-executive director of Australian company Green Rock Energy, which is using geothermal energy to power air conditioners at the University of Western Australia.

Susan Jeanes, chief executive of the Australian Geothermal Energy Association, said the Gillard government needed to support its own research, which found that geothermal energy could provide the cheapest source of clean energy. "In Australia, the Commonwealth has recognised that the development of new technologies has to be supported with $2.5 billion for clean coal and $1.6 billion for solar, but geothermal is more advanced around the world than clean coal and will be a third to half of the cost of solar for at least the next two decades", she said.

Westpac walks the line

Business Spectator
Tuesday 16/11/2010 Page: 1

Westpac has vowed to avoid the financing of any new inefficient and high carbon emitting assets, and says it will focus instead on the development of clean energy solutions. The pledge - the first to come from a major Australian bank - came in the annual report released on Monday that made a virtue of the bank's focus on sustainability, using the words "sustainability matters" as the single feature on the cover of its shareholder document.

The bank's newly drawn up position statement on the energy sector includes a framework that will apply to all finance activities - debt, financial markets, project finance and other services - relating to the energy sector. That includes all forms of power generation, distribution and transmission networks, and infrastructure and utilities associated with oil and gas production. The key phrase is the one that commits the bank to "avoid involvement in transactions which support the establishment or long-term continuation of inefficient and high carbon emitting assets into the future".

A spokesperson said that Westpac would honour its current commitments, but no new fossil fuel projects would be supported unless they adopted cleaner and less intensive generation, such as carbon capture and storage technology. Instead, the bank would focus on financing renewable energy, energy efficiency and clean technology, managing carbon risk and support research and policy development.

The bank has been a founding signatory to the Equator Principles, which broadly state that lending should avoid environmental harm, but this has been a lofty ambition that has been difficult to effect; as some might expect it to be. Just drawing up these rules has taken longer than expected, particularly with the GFC, and the bank has been busily providing additional training for its project financing staff this year to ensure that these principles and their implications are fully understood.

Australian banks have come under increasing pressure from environmental groups such as Greenpeace to curb their lending to fossil fuels, with ANZ a recent target because of its higher exposure to fossil fuel energy. ANZ is also a signatory of the Equator Principles, although it has said it sees its role as "evolutionary" rather than "revolutionary". Meanwhile, a Greenpeace spokesman has said it would be interesting to see what the Westpac pledge meant in practice.

Westpac was one of several large companies that took a prominent role last Friday at a meeting convened by Senator Christine Milne at Parliament House, that amounted to a "call to arms" to counter the influence of those who would argue for a carbon price of minimum cost, scope and flexibility.

Milne managed to attract representatives of around 70 groups - including the likes of Westpac, Lend Lease, GE, Origin Energy, AGL Energy and a bevy of clean energy groups, as well as representatives from think tanks, universities, industry bodies and NGOs for the two hour meeting.

Milne is concerned that, now that a carbon price in on the table, the debate is being hijacked by vested interests who want a narrow pricing scheme with a minimal price and without supplementary measures. She wants the vocal support from business and other groups to shift the debate from a focus on least-cost abatement to meet Australia's unconditional 5% target, to one of maximising the opportunities of a more ambitious longer term target.

The Greens are frustrated that emissions reduction targets are not on the agenda of the multi-party committee that Milne co-chairs. So, they are pushing for a carbon tax in the hope of guaranteeing a robust carbon price (mostly likely to be at least $20 a tonne) until such time as a higher target is agreed, and to ensure that there is sufficient flexibility in the scheme for it to be adjusted, as needs be, with scientific and international developments.

Rod Leaver, the head of Lend Lease's Australian operations and possibly the most senior executive at the meeting, said the company wanted a carbon price to provide certainty and drive change. Borrowing a well-used phrase, he said the risk was not from "setting the bar too high and not achieving it, but in setting it too low and achieving it".

Solar solutions in remote locations

Daily Telegraph
Wednesday 17/11/2010 Page: 67

Solar-Gem is a Sydney-based company that works to bring power to rural and regional communities around the world. Since its establishment just last year, Solar-Gem has experienced export success, landed four innovation and design awards and enjoyed growing use of its technology. Solar-Gem's system provides a "portable and reliable energy solution", according to its CEO, Khimji Vaghjiani.

It uses solar powered light-emitting diode (LED) units to create "efficient, renewable energy for lighting, mobile phones, small laptops and other appliances, while at the same time reducing reliance on grid-connected power", he said. Mr Vaghjiani said the advantages of the system are its portability and long life but getting it out into communities can be a challenge, although the company is looking at ways of improving this. The technology is being implemented in different countries, helping to achieve the company's goal of bringing electricity to the remote communities of the world.

In Africa, the LED units provide light for hospitals and surgeries, as well as a post-natal unit. A community in Fiji has also just had the system introduced. Closer to home, a trial is being undertaken at Calmsley Hill City Farm in Sydney's west. An official trial is also under way in a village on Elephanta Island in India, near the world heritage site of the Elephanta caves. A unit has been installed in each of the 35 homes in the village, and the system was first turned on in October during Diwali, the Indian festival of lights.

If successful, the trial could expand to include other villages on the island and across India. The trial was organised in conjunction with Austrade, which has worked with Solar-Gem to distribute its product. Austrade helped Solar-Gem market the business, as well as connect with potential overseas clients. Solar-Gem's innovative units, which are manufactured in Marrick have earned the company many awards, including Australian Innovator of the Year, a community contribution award and a gong for design excellence in architecture.

Funds urge clear policies on climate

Sydney Morning Herald
Wednesday 17/11/2010 Page: 3

A GLOBAL group of investment funds that control $US15 trillion have urged national governments to adopt strong climate change policies to ensure international investment in clean energy. In a statement to be published today, the group of 258 institutional investors, including HSBC and Allianz, say levels of investment in renewable energy are well below that needed to mitigate rising greenhouse gas emissions.

But if strong domestic policies are implemented, such as emissions reduction targets, energy and transport policies, and the phasing out of fossil fuel subsidies, the trillions of dollars in investment needed by the end of the decade would be sparked, they say. Governments should also ensure strong and sustained domestic carbon prices.

"Investors are concerned with the risks presented by climate change to regional and global economies and individual assets", the statement reads. "At the same time, investors are interested in the large potential economic opportunities that the transition to a low-carbon economy presents".

A recent study by the World Economic Forum found that $500 billion in public and private investment in clean energy is needed every year by 2020 to keep global warming below a 2°C increase in temperatures a crucial threshold that gives the world a strong chance of avoiding the worst effects of climate change.

Global investment in renewable energy last year was $145 billion, rising to an estimated $200 billion this year. The investors' statement says countries that do not have strong domestic climate change policies are missing out on international financing. "Capital is not flowing to low carbon investments in these countries at the scale required because of the lack of investor confidence in their climate and clean energy policy frameworks", it says.

China nuclear plant workers exposed to radiation, South China Post reports

www.bloomberg.com
Nov 16, 2010

Daya Bay nuclear power station workers in southern China were exposed to radiation equivalent to two chest X-rays after a leak at the plant, the South China Morning Post reported, citing an official from one of the plant's partners. The leak was caused by a fault in a pipe carrying hot water from a reactor, the English-language daily reported Chan Siu-hung, managing director of the Hong Kong Nuclear Investment Co., as saying.

The incident on Oct. 23 was classified a "level one" incident, on a scale of one to seven set by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Morning Post said. Level seven is the most serious category. The leak was contained in a sealed building, according to the report. Part of the electricity produced at Daya Bay supplies power to Hong Kong.

A small leak from a fuel rod at Daya Bay was contained on May 23 and there was no change in radioactive levels in neighboring areas, according to the plant's operator. The Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station is 50 kilometers (31 miles) from Hong Kong's Tsim Sha Tsui district.

The facility has been in commercial operation since 1994 and generates 10 billionkW-hours of electricity a year to Hong Kong and Guangdong province, according to the website of the Hong Kong Nuclear Investment, a unit of CLP Group Ltd, that owns 25% of the plant. State-owned Guangdong Nuclear Investment Co, owns the remaining 75 percent.

Calls made to CLP Group's Hong Kong office before office hours this morning went unanswered.

Total to build solar panel plant in France

www.businessweek.com
November 15, 2010

French oil and gas company Total SA said Monday it will begin building a solar panel plant in the Moselle region of France early next year. The installation is slated to house two production lines for a total capacity of 50MW peak, or about 220,000 photovoltaic panels per year, the company said.

The first production line is expected to begin operating toward the end of next year. The project will create about 80 jobs in the Moselle area, Total said. "The production unit, situated near our French, German and Northern European customers, allows us to strengthen our market capabilities", said Philippe Boisseau, president of Total Gas & Power.

Falklands’ wind power contribution new record: 40% of Stanley’s consumption

en.mercopress.com
November 16th 2010

Annual wind power contribution in the Falkland Islands has set a new record with the significant milestone of 40% of renewable contribution, according to Stanley Power Station Manager Glenn Ross.

This month the Sand Bay Wind Farm produced 40% of the total electricity required by Stanley. This beats the previous high of 38% achieved in August. The Sand Bay Wind Farm produced 115,272 units of electricity at an hourly average for the week of 686kWs. The highest hourly output was 1200kWs and the highest hourly percentage was 57%.

Glenn Ross said that fuel Displacement was 30,290 litres which gave an estimated weekly saving of £14,720. The Falklands currently have a total of six wind turbines the last three became operational on line last February. The installation of the first three wind turbines in 2007 resulted in the displacement of 26% of annual fuel consumption, reported at the time the Falklands government.

"This figure (40%) compares favourably to the UK Government's goal for 20% of electricity produced in the UK to be renewable by 2020, proving the Islanders' commitment to renewable energy. As well as reducing their carbon footprint in order to protect the pristine environment of the Islands, the increase in renewable energy has meant that the cost of electricity has been reduced by six pence per unit for Islanders", said the Falklands' government release.

The latest turbines to be incorporated are the same type and make as the first three turbines: 330kW synchronous variable speed and variable pitch turbines manufactured by Enercon (Germany).

The next phase in the development of the wind farm will be energy storage, achieved by charging a 2MW battery during optimal wind times and discharging the battery when wind is not available. This will ensure that energy production is kept more constant.

France sets wind energy record

www.windpowermonthly.com
Indpower Monthly, 15 November 2010

FRANCE: On 11 November, wind power covered 5% of the electricity needs of France for the day, setting a new record. Strong winds over the whole country pushed this up to a peak of 7% at one point during the night, when the power output reached 3885MW, according to data provided by the grid operator RTE.

"The turbines were operating at over 70% of their total power", says the Renewable Energy Syndicate (SER), a trade association. SER notes the electricity generated represents "nearly twice the average consumption of a city such as Paris."

Geothermal power pact for Alcoa, Greenearth

Age
Tuesday 16/11/2010 Page: 7

Alcoa has flagged its intention to power part of its energy-intensive operations in Victoria with geothermal power, signing a memorandum of understanding with Greenearth Energy.

Alcoa, which operates the world's largest integrated bauxite mining, alumina refining and aluminium smelting business, will take up to 12MWs of power, contingent on Greenearth Energy proving its resources and technology. If all goes to plan, Alcoa could be using geothermal power by 2014, with the amount supplied subject to commercial negotiations.

The next step is locating a site, which Alcoa has agreed to help do somewhere on its lease, but it would need approval from the Victorian government. The memorandum is a significant step for the prospects of geothermal power, one of the few renewable resources that can provide base-load energy.

Greenearth Energy managing director Mark Miller said the agreement was an endorsement of the company's geothermal prospects, given that Alcoa was heavily reliant on security of its energy supply. "Geothermal energy is being increasingly recognised as having the potential to deliver zero emissions, reliable and, importantly, base-load renewable energy generation", he said. Greenearth Energy shares soared as much as 45% but closed 6%, or 0.5¢, higher at 8.4¢.

Acciona Energy court date delayed

Adelaide Advertiser
Tuesday 16/11/2010 Page: 39

Acciona Energy's fight in court to defend the development of its $175 million wind farm near Mt Gambier has been adjourned into the new year to allow for medical evidence submissions. The Environment Resources and Development Court in Adelaide recently began proceedings on an appeal filed by dairy farmer Richard Paltridge over the construction of the wind farm near his property in Allendale East. The development had received approval from the District Council of Grant's Development Assessment Panel in March this year.

The council's planning and development director, Leith McEvoy, said the court had allowed for medical evidence with a doctor's statement introduced into the proceedings. "Acciona Energy and the council now have the right to bring in their own (medical) evidence", he said. "The industry needs to deal with the issues, so it's good in a way to present all the evidence".

The Spanish company - joint developer of the Cathedral Rocks wind farm near Port Lincoln with Roaring 40s and the consortium leader of the group building the Port Stanvac desalination plant through its Agua division - was scheduled to begin construction work on the 46 turbine, 70.5MW wind farm early next year.

Hearings in the Adelaide environmental court will resume towards the middle of January. It's the second development in court this year with a decision on an appeal against AGL Energy's Mount Bryan wind farm which is planned for the Razorback Ranges east of Hallett still pending.

$9 billion renewable energy windfall at stake

Clean Energy Council
12 Nov 2010

Victoria would benefit by up to $9 billion in renewable energy investment under current State Government policies, according to independent research released today. The report - commissioned by the Clean Energy Council - found that this would increase clean energy capacity by a substantial 3000MWs by 2016, the equivalent of powering an estimated 1.2 million homes.

It also found that an estimated 650 new jobs would be created each year through to 2016 in the construction and operation of renewable energy facilities. The report was conducted by respected economic consultants Carbon Market Economics at the request of the Clean Energy Council, Australia's peak body of more than 450 renewable energy companies - an apolitical not-for-profit organisation.

The study compared existing and proposed renewable energy policies in Victoria and their potential impact on renewable energy development, in the lead up to the Victorian election on November 27.

It found the effect of the Victorian Opposition policy on wind farms would be severely detrimental - between 50% and 70% of currently proposed wind farms in Victoria would not be developed if this policy was pursued. Additional expenditure in wind generation would drop by $2.6 to $3.6 billion from 2010-16.

The Clean Energy Council's chief executive Matthew Warren said that while the organisation didn't support any particular political party, it did campaign for policies which created the best environment for the development of clean energy, or against any party whose policy would restrict its growth.

"There's no doubt that substantial wind farm investment and jobs will immediately leave Victoria if the Coalition's current policies were adopted. This could effectively cripple the wind industry", Mr Warren said. It was also hugely contradictory to public opinion, he said. A recent Newspoll study found that 93% of all Victorians want more renewable energy. The report found an estimated 200 fewer jobs would be created from 2010 to 2016 if the Victorian Coalition's policy was adopted.

"The wind farm standards proposed by Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu, including 2km setbacks, would make it tougher to put up a wind turbine in regional Victoria than to dig a new coal mine. "The proposed standards are not based on any scientific measure. Victoria has some of the toughest wind farm development standards in the world", he said.

For more information, contact the Clean Energy Council's Media Advisor Mark Bretherton or on 0413 556 981 or 03 9929 4111

The coal bosses' plan: mine coal, sell coal, repeat until rich.

Sunday Age
Sunday 14/11/2010 Page: 21

Preventing climate change is the last thing on the coal industry's mind, writes Guy Pearse.

Once a year, coal bosses gather for the World Coal Conference: "It's where the coal deals are done", says the brochure. This year, I went too, as an academic, an observer and someone deeply concerned about coal's indisputable contribution to climate change. Carbon dioxide is the greenhouse gas most responsible for global warming, and coal use generates nearly half of the world's annual CO₂, emissions.

I half-expected to find an industry worrying about rising demand for clean energy. But at the conference in Amsterdam last month, there was no hint of foreboding among the 1400 delegates The concern wasn't dwindling demand, but meeting runaway demand, mostly in China and India.

The opening session set the tone. Fred Palmer, vice-president of Peabody Energy, the world's largest coal company, noted that since the "great debate" on climate change began, coal consumption had gone from 3.6 billion tonnes a year to almost 7 billion tonnes. By 2030, he predicted it would be more like 11-12 billion. "The climate change concerns of people everywhere are legitimate", he said, but alleviating energy poverty was "policy priority number one".

On the basis that it would leave billions in energy poverty, he declared it "immoral to say "we're not going to touch cog". To those saying continued coal use depends on developing carbon capture and storage or low carbon coal, his message was blunt: "We will use coal, and the world is going to use more coal". Furthermore, "using more coal to generate electricity is good for our health and good for our wealth".

There was a similarly defiant tone when I dropped the subject of climate change into conversation over lunch. Some openly doubted the science. One Australian executive said: "I just don't understand how we can ignore such an overwhelming body of scientific research", referring to the work of climate sceptics. He scoffed at the notion of capturing and storing emissions: "It isn't happening and it won't happen".

I run through the slow pace of carbon capture with a Swiss trader; the G8's goal is to have 20 plants worldwide up and running by 2020. His answer: "plant trees". The clear impression is that Asian-driven coal demand is a more powerful juggernaut than climate change. As one English delegate put it: "The Chinese don't give a stuff about greenhouse emissions, and nor do I".

The most striking thing about the conference was how few people attended the carbon capture and storage session. An almost full house had heard Palmer declare green coal the "only path" to deal with climate change. Yet a mere 35 delegates went to the capture and storage session, and fewer than 20 stayed to the end.

During question time, a British executive highlighted the contrast between the bullish talk about growth in global coal demand and the sparse attendance at the session. "Most of the industry isn't really taking notice", he warned. Instead, the focus is on supplying developing countries that have no absolute emissions reduction targets, and where capture is rarely mentioned.

A spokesman from Brazilian mining giant Vale captured the mindset: "Every morning, we get up and pray for China". Well they might. China is now building the equivalent of 10 New York Cities.

If investment bank UBS is right, Chinese annual coal consumption will rise from 3 to 5.5 billion tonnes by 2020. Many doubt that China's coal industry can grow fast enough to meet that demand, and some expect India to import 1 billion tonnes of coal annually by 2020. Coal exporters are rubbing their hands while they pray.

What's unclear is where the extra coal will come from. The only thing remotely as crucial to the equation as Chinese demand may be Australian supply, Australia produces around a third of the world's coal exports, and more than half the world's metallurgical coal exports.

Increasingly it looks as if projected demand will only be met if Australia doubles its production.

With so much hinging on Australia's continued willingness to turn a blind eye to the CO₂, it exports, it might just be Australia that the Chinese get up and pray for every morning. At the rate carbon capture is happening, the world has a hell of a problem if the coal industry's prayers are answered.

Guy Pearse is a research fellow at the Global Change Institute at the University of Queensland.

The true cost of energy

West Australian
Monday 15/11/2010 Page: 22

Again we see the WA Opposition criticising the Premier for increasing domestic energy prices. Unfortunately this political populism only serves to oversimplify critical issues regarding the true cost of energy, water and other resources, and who should pay these cost.

For too long, WA households and industry have enjoyed heavily subsidised energy. Make no mistake, households have borne the cost of these subsidies amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars of taxation revenue. The effect of these subsidies has been highly inefficient energy use and chronic under-investment in energy efficiency in WA industry and households alike. Conversely, in California, where energy efficiency is taken seriously, demand for the resource has remained stable while the size of the economy has been rapidly increasing.

Of course we need to ensure that low-income households do not bear an inequitable burden as a result of increasing energy prices. Creative thinking will identify a range of ways to achieve this without undermining the user-pays model that is critical to efficient operation of the energy market.

The utility cost assistance scheme is one such measure. Even better would be to provide information and financial assistance to assist low-income households upgrade homes and appliances to become more energy efficient. The shift to cost reflective pricing is a big step forward, however recent energy policy in WA has been a case "one step forward and two steps back".

The massive energy demand growth projected for WA is due to be met by an equally massive expansion in coal-fired power stations. While other countries and even Victoria are shutting down these dinosaurs (dubbed "death factories" by respected climate scientist, James Hansen), the WA Government has approved three new coal plants and is recommissioning a unit that was shut down years ago because of its pollution.

It is great to see that the Barnett Government is moving towards a much-needed strategic energy plan for WA. Sadly this could come too late the next generation of energy generation could be locked in if coal power proponents in WA are allowed to start pouring concrete. If this happens, WA households will be forced to bear the full burden of a carbon price as well, but this time the price increase will have been entirely avoidable.

The alternative is that both sides of politics wake up to the incredible renewable energy potential we have in WA, and start the urgent conversation about how our energy needs can be met from a combination of renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Piers Verstegen, director, Conservation Council of Western Australia (Inc.).

Experts Silence Wind Farm Noise

Clean Energy Council
November 11, 2010

Australia has some of the toughest, most up-to-date guidelines controlling wind farm noise in the world. There is no evidence that residents will suffer any direct health effects from living near operating wind farms, according to an independent report released by the Clean Energy Council yesterday.

The 51-page study was commissioned by the Clean Energy Council, the peak body for more than 400 companies with renewable energy interests. The Clean Energy Council's Chief Executive Mr Matthew Warren said the Wind Farms Technical Paper on Environmental Noise by acoustic consultancy Sonus reinforced existing independent research.

"Although wind farms have been generating clean energy safely for many years in Europe, we conducted this study to see how the Australian guidelines stack up. The results are very reassuring for communities in regional Australia, who will directly benefit from the investment in wind power", Mr Warren said.

Wind farms currently provide enough clean energy to power nearly 800,000 Australian homes (1841MWs). The report says their advantages need to be balanced with the needs of communities in their vicinity. The report was prepared to provide the latest information to communities, developers, planning and enforcement authorities and other stakeholders on environmental noise from wind farms.

The report concludes there is extensive evidence that the noise from wind farms developed and operated in accordance with the current standards and guidelines will not have any direct adverse health effects. It summarises research conducted into issues including, health impact and annoyance, infrasound and low frequency noise, amplitude modulation and sleep disturbance.

It notes: "All noise from any source including wind farms, which is audible, will result in complaints from some people. Recent research indicates the potential for complaints, annoyance and its associated stress and health impacts may be exacerbated by rhetoric, fears and negative publicity".

The report finds once wind farms are built the rates of complaints are very low in Australia and New Zealand and if a noise can be heard, then annoyance can result for some people, regardless of the noise level or the standard or guideline that applies. It also discusses the "nocebo" effect - a worsening of mental or physical health based on fear or belief in adverse affects. This is the opposite of the well-known placebo effect, where belief in positive effects or an intervention may produce positive results.

Footnote: Sonus is an independent Australian consultancy, specialising in the monitoring, prediction, data analysis, policy development and assessment of environmental noise from factories, road, rail, aircraft, commercial and industrial sources and has extensive experience specifically related to wind farms.

Click here to download the report.

For more information, contact the Clean Energy Council's Media Advisor Mark Bretherton or on 0413 556 981 or 03 9929 4111 or Communications Director Rosanne Michie on 0411 868 535.

VECCI in push for green power

Age
Thursday 11/11/2010 Page: 5

VICTORIA'S peak employment body is aiming to convince small and medium businesses it costs no more to be green. The Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry is running a pilot program, called Carbon Down, to show businesses they can chop an average of $850 a year off their electricity bill by shifting to a cheaper power plan with a 25% GreenPower component.

GreenPower is a government accreditation program for renewable energy sources such as sun, wind, water and waste. Kate Elborough, VECCI's manager of government programs, said Carbon Down was a free and independent cost-comparison service. "Effectively we do all the hard work", she said.

VECCI compared the power bills of 210 small and medium enterprises with available GreenPower plans for the six months between May and October. It found that businesses with average monthly power bills of more than $690 could save $1485 a year and prevent 70 tonnes of greenhouse gas being emitted into the atmosphere.

Those with a bill less than $690 a month would save $118 a year, or 6.3 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. The general manager of manufacturer Unipod, Peter Sheehan, said his company had switched to a 10% GreenPower plan with AGL Energy and would save $21,000 a year.

Meridian boosts Aussie play

Adelaide Advertiser
Tuesday 9/11/2010 Page: 40

NEW Zealand's largest renewable electricity generator, Meridian Energy, is increasing its play in the Australian market with the appointment of an inaugural chief executive to develop the business. Meridian Energy said Ben Burge's selection came at an exciting time for the renewables sector in Australia. The government-owned enterprise owns the 700MW Mount Millar wind farm on the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia - and is a joint venture partner with AGL Energy in the $1 billion Macarthur wind farm in Victoria.

The former IBM Business Analytics partner said the company had "a unique opportunity to be a leader in the sector". "A progressively improving regulatory environment and increasing focus on renewable energy and energy efficiency created opportunities in Australia", Mr Burge said.

A whiff of doubt about gas industry

Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday 6/11/2010 Page: 28

Belinda Robinson of the Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association spreads dangerous misinformation ("Gas is the way to go, if only we could", November 5).

She cites the conservative front group Australian Environment Foundation pointing to public opposition to Victorian wind farms because of "high energy cost, health fears and their paltry contribution to greenhouse emission reductions". Each assertion has been conclusively demolished many times over. Readers can check wind farm emission reductions on the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water website.

Robinson's arguments are laughable. She says, "One of the country's most promising geothermal projects near Geelong, which received $12 million in state and federal government support, has faced local opposition". If this is her only criticism, it raises questions about the writer's bona fides.

Winston Guynner, Alstonville


Belinda Robinson indulges in confused advocacy. She parades the claimed greenhouse gas benefits of gas, then quotes the climate change sceptical Australian Environment Foundation questioning the value of wind power.

The gas industry should come clean on its threats to the environment land disturbance and water pollution and stop claiming an unmitigated right to expand into key natural and agricultural areas. It's a finite transition fuel to a greener, cleaner future, not the destination.

Jeff Angel, Executive director, Total Environment Centre, Sydney

Dual tilt at solar costs

Courier Mail
Monday 8/11/2010 Page: 12

AUSTRALIA will inject $50 million into a joint research project with the US aimed at slashing solar power costs. The announcement was made in Melbourne yesterday to coincide with the visit of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has also insisted the US Government's decision to ditch its emissions trading scheme following a Republican resurgence in the midterm elections would not affect her plans. "I believe it's in Australia's interest to tackle climate change, and it's in Australia's interest to make sure we transform our economy to a low pollution, low carbon economy", Ms Gillard told the Nine Network. "The world is moving in that direction, it will require it of other economies, it will impact competition, how people trade, what they buy".

Ms Gillard and Ms Clinton made the solar announcement in a joint press conference, saying the project would make solar power as cheap, or cheaper, than conventional power. Ms Gillard, who announced that Australia would commit $50 million to the project, said one of the greatest barriers to a broader commercial take up of solar power was its cost. It will concentrate on advanced solar technologies such as dual-junction photovoltaic devices, hot-carrier solar cells and high temperature receivers.

Ms Gillard said the US had a strong solar power research program and the new project would build on existing expertise from both countries. "The project is part of an aggressive effort to bring the sales price of solar technology down by two to four times". Ms Clinton said the program aimed to make solar power competitive with conventional energy sources by 2015.

Solar blow-out may cost $600m in electricity rises

Sydney Morning Herald
Friday 5/11/2010 Page: 5

ENERGYAUSTRALIA has warned of a $600 million blow-out in power bills next year, claiming the federal government has underestimated the number of certificates it will issue as an incentive for installing small scale solar power systems on homes and businesses. The NSW government-owned power company warns in a submission to the federal government that the estimate upon which the Renewable Energy Certificate scheme was based "is likely to prove far too modest".

The financial impact of this for our industry may be an additional cost in excess of $600 million in 2011 and is likely to have a serious impact on electricity consumers", it says. The small-scale renewable energy scheme will begin on January 1, Renewable Energy Certificates, known as Small-scale Technology Certificates, worth $40 each, will be issued to encourage the installation of photovoltaic cells and solar hot water systems. Original modelling showed that up to 11 million of these certificates would be issued next year.

But EnergyAustralia, backed by other business and industry groups, claims this will blow out to about 30 million because the take-up rate of solar power will be greater than anticipated. Under the scheme, electricity retailers are required to buy back all the certificates issued. If, for example, a power company produces 10% of the nation's electricity, it will have to buy back 10% of all the certificates issued.

EnergyAustralia says the cost blow-out, caused by having to buy back more certificates than anticipated, will be passed on to customers using conventionally generated power. The energy company AGL Energy warned in October of a 3% increase in power bills because of the anticipated blow-out. The paper and packaging company Amcor has submitted that the number of certificates should be capped or the price halved to $20.

Power prices are a hot political issue at state and federal levels. Last week the Premier, Kristina Keneally, slashed the feed in tariff that the state government paid to those with solar power systems from 600 to 200/kW of energy fed back into the grid. The move was motivated by a higher-than-expected take-up of the government's solar bonus scheme, which was putting extra pressure on already-soaring power bills.

This week the chairman of the NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal, Rod Sims, a member of the government's multi-party committee on climate change, told the Herald a carbon price should allow federal and state governments to phase out more expensive greenhouse gas abatement programs such as solar feed-in tariffs and the renewable energy target to take pressure off household power prices.

The federal government's small-scale renewable energy scheme was a consequence of the revamped Renewable Energy Target, which aims to have 20% of power generated from renewable sources by 2020. That scheme was split in two small- and large-scale this year after big companies like AGL Energy complained that so many certificates were being handed out that they were dwindling in value.