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The new CSIRO GenCost 2023-24 report released this week makes for very interesting reading. In the report, the Australian Government’s independent scientific body subjects the nuclear barracking of Peter Dutton and Ted O’Brien to a comprehensive science and economics based, peer reviewed debunking. Peter Dutton has now pivoted to spruiking large scale nuclear reactors, having repeatedly thumped the table last year asserting in the face of all the available evidence that small modular reactors are the solution for Australia’s energy transition, with a similar reception from the CSIRO. Read more

As a new CSIRO report demonstrates once and for all that nuclear is not viable in Australia as a zero-emissions energy source, Tim Buckley explains that nuclear would lock in permanent, ultra-high energy prices for Australians. Read more

Senior energy market analyst and director of Climate Energy Finance Tim Buckley said the report was “exceptionally disappointing”. He said AEMO’s report effectively indicated the energy market regulator wasn’t doing its job. “AEMO models in its May report released today that NSW reliability has improved relative to 2023, but only if new investments underway in renewable energy, dispatchable capacity, transmission and Consumer Energy Resources (CER) such as rooftop solar and batteries progress as advised. Read more

Australia’s energy market operator, AEMO, is warning of power shortages in NSW, Victoria and South Australia in the coming years, as key energy projects fall behind schedule. Its latest report calls for urgent investment and coordination of smaller-scale energy projects to shore up the grid’s reliability. Energy analysts say rooftop solar and household batteries will be crucial in keeping the lights on. Read more

Tim Buckley, an energy analyst and director of Climate Energy Finance, labelled AEMO’s forecast “exceptionally disappointing” for NSW. “The real reliability gap here is the failure of authorities to accelerate the rollout of renewable energy, transmission and grid connections needed to ensure cheap and reliable energy to consumers statewide,” he said. Read more

n this episode of The Greener Way, we hear from Tim Buckley, founder and director of Climate Energy Finance, a public interest pro bono think tank that produces research and analysis on accelerating the global energy transition. Read more

Tim Buckley breaks down the new CSIRO GenCost report out today which finds that a large-scale nuclear reactor would take at least until 2040 to build, cost around $17bn and produce power costing twice as much as firmed renewables, definitively showing that Peter Dutton’s nuclear fantasy is a complete furphy. Read more

Tim Buckley, the executive director Climate energy Finance has similarly pinpointed green iron as “the number one opportunity” for Australia in the zero emissions global economy and a $100 billion a year export value uplift opportunity. Read more

Xuyang Dong talked to Carbon Brief about CEF’s new report POWER SHIFT: China installed a record 293 gigawatts (GW) of wind and solar in 2023 – pushing its total capacity to 1,050GW, according to a new report. The report, published by Australia-based thinktank Climate Energy Finance, says that, if this rate of renewables growth is maintained, then China could reach its “dual carbon” climate goals earlier than planned. Read more

A new report by Australia-based thinktank Climate Energy Finance argues that China could reach its “dual carbon” climate goals earlier than planned. Xuyang Dong talked to Carbon Brief about the findings of the report, China’s coal power output will soon peak and decline – despite rising coal capacity – thanks to the rapid rise of clean energy sources. Read more

Tim Buckley reviews Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ Future Made in Australia Budget handed down this week, breaking down the key takeouts and what it means for Australia’s pathway to decarbonisation as the the energy transition accelerates globally. Read more

Tim Buckley said: In the budget, we saw an excellent $21bn down payment. It is great to see that this is additional funding, not the usual political trick of rehashing previous press releases. The development of the production tax credit (PTC) model for critical minerals and green hydrogen to incentivise onshore value-adding is a very strong step forward, a clear acknowledgement that Australia can’t simply leave it to free markets when other countries have made such significant public interest interventions, undermining global trade. We particularly note the absence of any additional stimulus on “electrifying everything” and only $28m of new funding to better integrate consumer energy resources into the grid. Read more