Analysis

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Beyond the Rebate: Battery Policy, VPPs, and Household Returns

A re-elected Labor Government’s promise to cut home battery costs by 30 per cent through the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES) has sparked interest—and raised questions. While the move may accelerate battery uptake among solar households, critics warn it could deepen inequities by leaving renters and vulnerable customers behind. More importantly greater value will be realised if the storage capacity is also coordinated through mechanisms like Virtual Power Plants (VPPs). We take a look at the benefits of VPPs.

BY David Markham Apr 10 2025

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Australia's Solar Waste: A Growing Problem

Australia has long been a global leader in the adoption of solar energy, with one of the highest per capita rates of rooftop solar installations worldwide. Solar power has become a cornerstone in the nation's commitment to sustainability, contributing significantly to reducing its carbon footprint and reliance on fossil fuels. However, as solar panels reach the end of their lifespan, the issue of solar panel waste is rapidly emerging as a significant environmental challenge that could escalate in the coming decades. We take a closer look.

BY Tom Monaghan Mar 06 2025

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Frontier Economics and the cost of the transition: How does it stack up?

Nearly two weeks ago, headlines revealed Australia’s energy transition would be more expensive than previously estimated. This news stemmed from modelling by Frontier Economics, which highlighted long-term costs beyond the commonly cited net present value figure of $122 billion in capital cost, as outlined in the Australian Energy Market Operator’s (AEMO) 2024 Integrated System Plan (ISP). We took a closer look.

BY Australian Energy Council Nov 28 2024

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Queensland’s New Government: An Energy Policy Pivot

After Queensland's recent election, the Liberal National Party (LNP), led by David Crisafulli, is set to shift Queensland’s energy plan to one that prioritises affordability, reliability, and coal continuity over ambitious renewable targets. This shift from the previous government's approach aims to balance immediate cost control with stability, though it may challenge Australia's broader renewable energy goals. So, what policies does the new LNP government plan to implement, and what challenges may they encounter? We take a look.

BY Tom Monaghan Oct 31 2024

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International Energy Summit: The State of the Global Energy Transition

Australian Energy Council CEO Louisa Kinnear and the Energy Networks Australia CEO and Chair, Dom van den Berg and John Cleland recently attended the International Electricity Summit. Held every 18 months, the Summit brings together leaders from across the globe to share updates on energy markets around the world and the opportunities and challenges being faced as the world collectively transitions to net zero. We take a look at what was discussed.

BY Louisa Kinnear Oct 24 2024

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May 2024 Variable Renewable Energy Drought and the ISP in 2040

Recently we published an article on the 20-27 May 2024 Variable Renewable Energy (VRE) drought estimating the hourly capacity factors of utility scale wind and solar by NEM region. The severity of this drought on wind generation particularly in NSW, Victoria and SA invited the question as to how the future grid would perform under the same conditions when gas powered generation (GPG) and hydro are the only genuinely dispatchable sources of electricity. We took a closer look.

BY Peter Brook Oct 24 2024

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Australia’s Green Hydrogen Ambitions: Soldiering On Despite Adversity

Australia's green hydrogen sector is key to the nation's long-term decarbonisation plans, with ambitions to become a leading global producer and exporter. Despite strong government support and vast renewable resources, recent setbacks from major players like Fortescue and Origin have highlighted significant challenges to achieving a commercially viable industry. We take a look at challenges and opportunities facing the sector.

BY Tom Monaghan Oct 17 2024

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Phantom Dwellings in Australia: A Growing Barrier for Renewable Energy Projects

As Australia intensifies its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve 82% renewable energy by 2030, significant obstacles continue to emerge. One of the more insidious and less understood tactics employed by opponents of renewable energy development is the strategic use of phantom dwellings - proposed residential developments that are never intended to be built but are utilised to delay or block renewable projects by exploiting legal and planning loopholes. We take a look at how this tactic is being used, the impact it’s having on renewable projects, and what can be done to mitigate against it.

BY Tom Monaghan Oct 10 2024

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Energy Retail: Meeting the Future Needs of Energy Consumers

The electrification of everything, responsive demand and energy storage, the rise of prosumers and digitalisation and the evolving regulatory framework are all changing the landscape for energy consumers, making it clear that the traditional energy only retail model is not likely to meet all of consumers’ needs in a high consumer energy resources (CER) world. Currently, the AEC and its members are in the midst of a series of projects which will help consumers find the connections they need. What are are they and how will they help? We take a closer look.

BY Jo De Silva Oct 03 2024

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The Challenge Ahead for Australia’s Net Zero Economy Authority

Earlier this month. the Bill to establish a Net Zero Economy Authority was passed by Parliament. The new Authority aims to promote Australia’s economic transformation as the country moves towards a net zero emissions economy, ensuring the regions and their workers are both supported and able to benefit from the transition. So how will the Authority achieve this, and how will it fit in with the plethora of jurisdictional and industry transition efforts already underway? We take a closer look.

BY Braeden Keen Sep 19 2024

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A tale of two approaches: How does Victoria’s energy plan differ from the 2024 ISP?

The release of the Victorian Government’s energy plan – Cheaper, Cleaner, Renewable: Our Plan for Victoria’s Electricity Future, outlines the Government’s roadmap and what will be needed to reach an ambitious emission reduction target of net zero by 2045. Like AEMO’s 2024 Integrated System Plan (ISP), Victoria sees wind and solar as key pillars to their transition, along with battery storage. So, what does it believe it will need to achieve net zero, and how does this differ from the ISP? We take a closer look.

BY Tom Monaghan Aug 29 2024

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Battery Storage: Australia’s current climate

As the world shifts to renewable energy, the importance of battery storage becomes more and more evident. Intermittent sources of generation – wind and solar – are playing an increasing role during the transition, and as dispatchable plants leave the market, battery storage, along with pumped hydro and gas-fired generation, will become more critical to the grid. So, what does Australia’s storage capabilities look like, and what will be needed to meet our net zero targets? We take a look.

BY Tom Monaghan Aug 22 2024

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Energy transition understanding limited: Surveys

Since Graham Richardson first proposed a 20 per cent reduction in Australia’s greenhouse gas emission levels in 1988, climate change and Australia’s energy transition has been at the forefront of government policies and commitments. However, despite more than three decades of climate action and debate in Australia, and energy policy taking centre stage in the political arena over the last decade, a reporting has found confusion and hesitation towards the transition is common among voters. We took a closer look.

BY Tom Monaghan Aug 08 2024

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Green certification key to Government’s climate ambitions

The energy transition is creating surging corporate demand, both domestically and internationally, for renewable electricity. But with growing scrutiny towards greenwashing, it is critical all green electricity claims are verifiable and credible. The Federal Government has designed a policy to perform this function but in recent months the timing of its implementation has come under some doubt. We take a closer look.

BY Rhys Thomas Jun 27 2024

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Transport Sectoral Plan – A breakdown of how the transport industry will reach net zero

Transport emissions are on track to become Australia’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. To address this, the Federal Government has published its Transport and Infrastructure Net Zero Consultation Roadmap, outlining the steps to be taken to align transport with Australia’s efforts to reach net zero emission by 2050. We took a closer look at the roadmap.

BY Tom Monaghan Jun 13 2024

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Australia will soon have a Net Zero Plan – what can we expect?

The Federal Government has promised to develop a Net Zero Plan by the end of the year, which will involve integrating six sector plans to help Australia reach net zero by 2050. But with most sectoral decarbonisation policies focused only up until 2030, some unknowns are emerging about what this Plan might look like and how it intends to merge the sector pathways to promote an orderly and efficient economy-wide transition. We take a look at how this can be achieved.

BY Rhys Thomas May 02 2024