Special report: Insights and analysis
adviser and private sector senior executive, policy creator, change management consultant, business manager and public servant continuing his lifelong commitment to a low-carbon 100% renewable energy world. Until recently Steve was the Senior Adviser Environment & Sustainable Development to Simon Corbell MLA, Minister for Environment & Sustainable Development in the ACT Government.
while killing the industry which can most effectively provide clean power now. The Council has provided information to support our RET position in this issue of Solar Progress in the form of easy to read infographics. As was said by US businessman Bernard Baruch, ‘Every man has a right to his own opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts’ – although the simplicity aids presentation, the graphics are based on solid facts. Solar reduces power bills for those who have it and most importantly by 2016 the RET will reduce the cost of electricity for all consumers.12 Solar is an employment-creating industry with more than 18,500 now working in the industry. World wide and in Australia the solar industry has been growing at around 14per cent since 2008 – virtually the only industry doing so and at the highest rate. The Council’s position is simple – just the status quo – the retention of the 41,000GWh target by 2020 with uncapped small scale solar.
REFERENCES 1. http://www.smh.com.au/ articles/2005/09/08/1125772645916.html 2. http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/6421107 3. http://www.climatechange.gov.au/sites/climatechange/ files/files/mret-response-pdf.pdf 4. http://www.efa.com.au/Library/CthEnergyWhitePaper. pdf 5. http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/ display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fbillhome% 2Fr4142%22 6. http://www.garnautreview.org.au/2008-review.html 7. http://www.garnautreview.org.au/update-2011/garnautreview-2011.html
Natural conclusions I finish with some reflections on the energy market. Around the world these highly regulated power generation and distribution environments are being challenged by market forces beyond the control of existing players. A business model which has lasted more than 100 years is being turned on its head. First, despite the ostrichlike denial of some, the world is demanding that a price be put on pollution and economies are doing so even where public policy is not in place to mandate that. Banks and insurers are internalising those costs despite an absence of national public leadership in some countries and the lack of any binding international agreements. The finance markets are talking decisive action to hedge and protect against what they assess to be real risks of climate change and the fossil fuel industry. The costs of renewables are already about one-fifth that of any nuclear power technology even if that were able to be deployed with the speed required to meet the emissions cuts the science demands. Those cost pressures are already seen in the competition for new generation in markets that have increasing demand – where for new generation capacity solar and wind compete head-on with gas and are cheaper than coal. Solutions with utility scale storage and systems for managing distributed supply to match demand are widely and successfully deployed, many by innovative Australian companies . At the household and SME level highly competitive 40 | ISSUE 1 • 2014
8. http://climatechangeauthority.gov.au/ret 9. http://climatechangeauthority.gov.au/sites/ climatechangeauthority.gov.au/files/files/Government %2Bresponse%2Bto%2BRET%2Breview%2B21%2BMarc h%2B2013.pdf 10.http://www.accc.gov.au/business/anti-competitivebehaviour/unconscionable-conduct 11. http://www.accc.gov.au/business/anti-competitivebehaviour/misuse-of-market-power 12. http://www.recagents.asn.au/wp-content/ uploads/2014/02/RAA-Impact-of-SRES-on-Power-pricesFinal.pdf
storage solutions are imminent, not five or ten years away, but under two years away with a cost to householders under 20c/kWh allowing plug and play time-shifting of their solar PV system output. The choices faced are simple and clear – make no changes to the RET and keep the system that has been working with great success, or turn Australia backwards and try to fight the clean energy tidal wave. If the latter then instead of being on top and surfing the inevitable clean energy economy that wave will crash over us anyway – and we will then pay much higher costs to try to catch the next wave.
Steve Blume is President of the Australian Solar Council and CEO Owner of NoCarbon which creates partnerships to plan and deliver large scale commercial and community solar and renewables projects. Steve is a former political
“The choices faced are simple and clear – make no changes to the RET and keep the system that has been working with great success, or turn Australia backwards and try to fight the clean energy tidal wave.”