Syndicated to Times of India and globally via AFP | The dreams of Australia’s potential as a renewables superpower have invariably come to nothing as policy makers grapple with the country’s long reliance on iron ore, thermal coal, and natural gas – which remain its most lucrative exports. “These massive economic windfalls from mining and coal will soon start to drop off as economies decarbonise,” energy analyst Tim Buckley told AFP. With this plan in the works, and if we make the right choices, that renewables dream could become a reality within the next decade. Read more

The Modi-led “Make in India” campaign “has been an own goal for the Indian people”, Tim Buckley of Climate Energy Finance (CEF) tells Carbon Brief, pointing out that both solar module and battery costs have halved globally over the past year. He says trade barriers have made solar more expensive to install and that India risks “being left behind” in the renewable energy race. He adds: “India has failed to understand the magnitude of the tech advances involved led by China; putting up trade barriers has deprived India. Modi has regularly talked about India building 50GW of solar in a year, but has averaged less than a third of that and has fail[ed] to deliver on it five years in a row.” Read more

The boss of Orica, a major explosives manufacturer that relies on gas, says the federal government’s gas strategy won’t assist what remains of Australia’s manufacturing industry unless it caps prices at globally competitive levels.Analyst Tim Buckley from Climate Energy Finance described the federal government’s gas announcement as “bizarre” and argued it contradicted the government’s decarbonisation ambitions. “Prime Minister Albanese’s Future Made in Australia is exactly the sort of strategy we need, and then the federal government comes out with this own goal,” he told The Business. Read more

There is a lot to unpack in the Albanese government’s Future Gas Strategy, a mind-boggling policy move that seeks to lock the fossil fuel into Australia’s energy and export – and greenhouse gas emissions – mix to 2050 and beyond. Finally, Tim Buckley from Climate Energy Finance says the “gas shortage” narrative being lapped up by the government is “fabricated and fact-free.” “East Australia produces 5 times as much gas as we use domestically, most of it exported and then sold back to us at outrageously inflated prices,” Buckley said on Thursday. “The only winners from the Future Gas Strategy are the multinationals. And the only gas shortage is a shortage of gas cartel ethics, aided and abetted by a government that appears to be suffering a severe case of industry capture.” Read more

“It is ridiculous and beyond disappointing that the Australian Government in 2024 is releasing a long-term strategy that centres methane gas in the transition to net zero by 2050. The strategy released today is a massive misstep in the context of the strides the Albanese government has been making in pivoting to our economic future as renewables powered zero-emissions trade and investment leader. Read more

Treasurer Jim Chalmers unveiled a major overhaul of foreign investment rules, saying the changes were designed to help attract private capital and better manage national security risks. Climate Energy Finance director Tim Buckley said Chinese investors had made important contributions to Australia’s renewable industry, and the more competitive investors able to bid, the better for the energy transition. “We need to collaborate with them because they have got the world’s best technology in solar panels, polysilicon, batteries, wind turbines and electric vehicles,” Mr Buckley said. “Getting them to collaborate and invest in Australia in partnership with us will be critically important”. Read more

The New South Wales government will announce within days that it will extend the operations of Australia’s biggest coal-fired power station for as long as four more years. “They are responding to the demands of the fossil fuel sector,” said Tim Buckley, head of Climate Energy Finance, who has compiled reports on how NSW can retain a reliable power system without Eraring. “They will be using taxpayer funds to crowd out private capital” that would otherwise be investing in renewable energy, he said. In March, Buckley estimated that keeping the power station operating could cost the government as much as $150m a year for just two of its four units. Read more

Where China once built an industry from Australian innovation, Australia now needs China’s help to do the same. To build low-cost panels at scale, experts say Australia needs access to the production line technology and manufacturing patents China has developed over the past 20 years. “I see manufacturing [intellectual property] as a challenge but also an opportunity,” Tim Buckley, director of Climate Energy Finance, said. “This is a way of enhancing collaboration with China.” Read more

A group of seven Australian renewable energy industry organisations and investment bodies has called on the government to stay the course on the Future Made in Australia Act (FMAA) and back it with targeted budgetary commitments to leverage a “once-in-a century” decarbonisation opportunity. The Clean Energy Investor Group (CEIG), Clean Energy Council (CEC), Rewiring Australia, Smart Energy Council (SEC), Beyond Zero Emissions, Climate Energy Finance (CEF), and Climate Capital Forum have stood as one to show their support for the recently announced initiative that is designed to build local industries focusing on the clean energy transition. Read more

In a show of unity, Australia’s leading energy industry players and investment groups have thrown their weight behind Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s landmark ‘Future Made in Australia’ initiative. Tim Buckley, director of Climate Energy Finance, urged the government to “hold its nerve and deliver an ambitious and coordinated package of budget incentives”, enabling Australia to pivot from its historic over-dependence on fossil fuels to a zero-emissions global trade and investment leader. Read more

Australian Associated Press – Clean energy companies and investors called on the federal government to “hold its nerve” and deliver an ambitious and coordinated package of budget incentives to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels. In a joint statement, they urged Treasurer Jim Chalmers to use the May budget to encourage investment, as rival economies throw trillions of dollars into renewable energy and clean tech to secure their national interests. “We urge the government to hold its nerve and deliver an ambitious and coordinated package of budget incentives,” Mr Buckley said. Read more

Responding to criticism of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Made in Australia Act, a group of energy and finance leaders joined forces on Thursday to call for the scale of budget support required for decarbonisation. Australia could not afford to “sit out” the accelerating global transition and needed taxpayer support to unlock the private capital needed for zero-emissions economic opportunities, they said. Read more