‘Slow motion train wreck': Energy experts tear apart Chris Bowen's renewables agenda, label green hydrogen plan ‘hopeful hand-waving'
Leading energy and environmental experts Aidan Morrison and Graham Lloyd have torn apart the efficacy of Labor's renewable energy policy, while labelling Energy Minister Chris Bowen's green hydrogen agenda as unreliable and 'impractical'.
Mr Bowen claimed on Wednesday that a 'silent majority' of Australians supported his green agenda and the Albanese government considered the results of the federal election a glowing endorsement of renewable energy.
In an article published in The Australian, Mr Bowen stated there had not been much evidence to support the 'noise' against renewables and the electorate had gone to the ballot box in favour of an 'affordable plan' that was 'backed by the experts'.
However, energy program director for the Centre for Independent Studies, Aidan Morrison, slammed Labor's emissions reduction plan and explained the policy faced myriad pressing obstacles.
When asked if the Energy Minister's renewable energy revolution could be implemented according to Labor's 2050 timeline, Mr Morrison claimed 'there's just not a chance' and likened the green agenda to a 'slow-motion train wreck'.
'It's like we're kicking around ice on the deck of the Titanic thinking: 'Oh, that was fun to brush up against that'. We haven't taken seriously how badly things are shaping up' he said.
Mr Morrison said the tell-tale signs the renewables program was failing were 'all there at the moment', including mounting electricity bills, financing dilemmas and aging coal fired power stations.
'They can't get any private investors to basically completely back renewable energy projects without them being underwritten by the capacity investment scheme', which serves as one of the government's many revenue accelerant schemes for renewable energy projects, he explained.
'That's an open-ended subsidy. We don't know what it's going to cost to force them to do things the market would otherwise not do.'
The investment scheme aims for a total of 32 gigawatts (GW) of new capacity, with 23 GW being renewable energy sources, representing an eye-watering $52 billion in investment.
The plan also includes nine GW of clean energy dispatchable capacity, representing $15 billion in additional investment.
Mr Morrison also expressed fear of grid instability by referencing AEMO's desire to possess 'emergency backstop' powers to switch off rooftop solar systems in every state during extreme situations to avoid 'system collapse'.
'Rooftop solar is about to be curtailed this year. The market operator has told people we have to turn off their solar because there's too much rooftop solar in the system to keep it steady for an engineering system,' he said.
Graham Lloyd, The Australian's environment editor, was separately pressed about green hydrogen after metal mining giant Fortescue, headed by billionaire Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest, axed 90 green hydrogen jobs across the nation on Wednesday.
Mr Lloyd said the private sector had formed a consensus the 'green hydrogen boondoggle was a bust', adding the 'government was late to the party in realising that it's throwing good money after bad'.
'(Andrew Forrest) is a smart guy, he's packed up his tent and he's gone back to Western Australia to concentrate on trying to make green steel,' he said.
'The difficult part of course is delivering it and there's a lot of evidence that this is more difficult and more expensive than people had hoped, and on that score green hydrogen was going to be a key part of that and we're seeing now power authorities saying grid vulnerability is an issue and that requires a much greater use of gas.'
Meanwhile, Mr Morrison described green hydrogen as 'just crazy' and claimed Mr Bowen was 'the last man standing, still putting any hope in it'.
'This whole plan is just built on hopeful hand-waving. Serious engineering has not been done to actually pin this down' he said.
'All of the AEMO hydrogen system stability things are about plans to make studies, to investigate further what the requirements will be. There's no way they can set a cost to that.
"The hydrogen thing is just kind of way out there. It's such an impractical gas to be able to store and move around. It's never going to be a useful fuel and a substitute for lots of the things that fossil fuels currently do for us, particularly in heavy vehicles.'
Despite Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stating: 'Green hydrogen has a role to play in Australia's future', the majority of touted hydrogen projects in Australia have not moved beyond the concept or approval stage.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
‘Whitlam-esque': Zoe McKenzie blasts Labor's divisive tax hike on super accounts, slams Tasmanian opposition for triggering early election
Victorian Liberal MP Zoe McKenzie has lambasted Labor for continuing to advance its plan to hike taxes on superannuation accounts and impose levies on unrealised gains whilst hammering the Tasmanian opposition for sending punters to a winter election. Labor's plan to raise taxes on superannuation accounts over $3 million to 30 per cent and to target unrealised capital gains has sent shockwaves throughout the political and business arena, with financial doyens accusing the government of discarding decades of precedent. The Coalition was previously in talks with the Albanese government to revise certain elements of the legislation, chiefly the concept of taxing unrealised gains, however shadow Treasurer Ted O'Brien officially confirmed on Thursday the LNP would oppose the bill. Yet, former Reserve Bank board members Donald McGauchie and Roger Corbett, in addition to a litany of major Liberal Party donors, have pressed the Coalition to remain at the negotiating table and to secure what it deems crucial exemptions for illiquid assets including farms and small businesses. Ms McKenzie, an outspoken moderate who holds one of the Liberal's last outer-suburban seats, railed against the policy, but did not address if the Coalition would resume talks with Labor to modify the legislation. 'I think this is a terrible piece of policy and a terrible precedent for the future, Labor is effectively saying that they will tax money in your pocket, and you do not yet have this money,' she told Sky News on Saturday. The Member for Flinders echoed criticism from industry magnates in relation to the controversial concept of taxing unrealised gains, stating, 'you may have it in the future, you may not have it in the future, but you will be taxed on it'. 'You may incur a loss in the figure, and you won't get that tax back and that's the principle that we must fight here, because once it's started, it could go anywhere,' indicating that the tax could be extended to a range of other assets including real estate and stocks. 'This is a devilish tax and should be fought by the Coalition parties most stridently, this government is very good at speaking liberal-light in terms of their economic narrative, but it is utterly Whitlam-esque in terms of its impact on the Australian economy'. While the Coalition has vowed to fight the legislation, the bill is expected to pass both houses of parliament unopposed, with the Greens joining with Labor in the Senate despite lobbying for the policy to be levied on those with super accounts over $2 million. 'The point is they're going after money no one yet has, these are paper profits, these are family businesses, these are farms held in super funds that people may well have to liquidate just to pass a putative profit that may not exist when finally realised in years to come," Ms McKenzie said. 'They will need the Greens support in the Senate and as you know, the Greens are pushing to lower that threshold from three million to two million. So, it gives the Australian people a very clear indication of what might happen when Labor and the Greens run the show for the next three years'. The shadow assistant minister then turned her attention to the ongoing political chaos in Tasmania. Liberal Premier Jeremy Rockliff lost a no-confidence motion in parliament on Thursday, with the speaker casting the deciding vote, resulting in the state heading to it's second election in as little as 14 months. Ms McKenzie savaged Tasmanian Labor leader Dean Winter for sending the state to a snap winter poll and argued the opposition parties had collectively torpedoed a popularly elected government. 'I think the Tasmanian people would be very disappointed with what's happened this week, basically holding an elected government hostage, so it looks like they will be going back to a mid-winter election. We've all done them and they're horrendous," she said. 'I'm sure the people of Tasmania will not be grateful for being dragged back to the polls so soon after a federal election and indeed just 14 months after a state election." Tasmanians will have to wait until next Tuesday to find out when they will return to the polls, with the parliament scrambling to draft emergency legislation to fund government services of which are due to be tabled on the same day. Independent MPs including Craig Garland have called on the beleaguered Premier to resign, with Mr Rockliff guaranteeing he would not sell off state-owned assets to pay down debt if he won the election, of which served as a key factor in sparking the political row.
Sky News AU
2 hours ago
- Sky News AU
‘We should not take a backwards step': Littleproud on Australian biosecurity laws
The National Party says Australia's biosecurity should not be used as a bargaining tool for the removal of US tariffs. The Albanese Government is reportedly considering amending rules, making it easier for the US to export beef to Australia, as long as it can be done safely. Last year, Australia sent almost 400,000 tonnes of beef to America, worth more than $4 billion. Nationals Leader David Littleproud says "we should not take a backwards step and concede biosecurity protocols that are protecting the agricultural industry".
Sky News AU
4 hours ago
- Sky News AU
Legal challenge against Woodside extension expected
The federal government is expected to face a legal challenge on the approval of Woodside Energy's North West Shelf gas plant extension. Environmental and Indigenous activists say the gas plant threatens the erosion of rock art in the area. Labor has agreed to give "Save Our Songlines" founder Raelene Cooper at least three days' notice before formal approval of the project. The commitment will give the traditional custodians an opportunity to file an injunction against the decision.
