Media

Recent blackout crisis in Victoria is caused by a decade of inaction by the Coalition government in addressing climate and energy policy. The blackout was caused by storm damage to power lines, leading to the shutdown of coal-fired generators, which contributed to a third of the state’s power supply being lost. Tim Buckley argues that a lack of investment in transitioning the grid to renewable energy sources, such as rooftop solar and battery storage, has left the energy system vulnerable to such crises. Urging for a shift towards decentralized, decarbonized, and renewable energy solutions, the article emphasizes the need for state and federal cooperation and investment in a modern, resilient energy grid. Read more

Tim Buckley breaks down the COALition’s attempt to kill the renewables revolution by sowing disinformation and dissent in the community as the rest of the world rapidly decarbonises Read more

As Tim Buckley and Annemarie Jonson write, the Coalition’s Luddites are at it again, doing what they do best – wrecking the joint as they try to blow up the renewables transition. Meanwhile, investment in the clean energy that will solve the climate crisis and deliver permanent energy bill relief to consumers is skyrocketing Read more

Climate and energy experts criticised a $137 million federal grant to BlueScope Steel for a $1.15 billion upgrade of its Port Kembla blast furnace – extending coal-based steelmaking for two decades – as a missed chance to spur more ambitious carbon reductions. The Climate Capital Forum, which represents investors, decarbonisation firms and policy experts, said that “while Australia procrastinates, developed world leaders are pivoting”. Read more

Australia can close down its largest coal-fired power plant and the residents of New South Wales wouldn’t experience any interruption in their electricity, according to a new report. CEF director Tim Buckley analyzed the 2024-2030 power sector and determined NSW will get along just fine without depending on dirty old coal. “There is no reason why the taxpayer should be on the hook for multiples of hundreds of millions of dollars to keep Eraring open,” said Buckley Read more

There is no need to use taxpayer fund to keep Australia’s biggest coal power plant open beyond its planned closure date in 2025 as the state of NSW has made “massive progress” on new renewable energy and battery capacity, according to think tank Climate Energy Finance. Read more

Tim Buckley tells AusBiz there is no reliability gap surrounding the closure of Aus’ biggest coal plant, Eraring in NSW. He points to a report by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) presented to the NSW Energy Minister which shows no need for public subsidies to keep the plant open. Read more

In Canberra Times and across 100+. mastheads, CEF’s new report detailing the pipeline of firmed renewables that means Australia’s biggest coal power station, Eraring, can close down on schedule in 2025 with no electricity supply reliability gap. Read more

Climate Energy Finance’ Tim Buckley,: “The NSW government’s decision on whether to extend the life of Eraring coal fired power plant, Australia’s biggest, beyond its planned closure date of August 2025 at taxpayers’ expense, ostensibly to ensure supply, will be a hot button issue this year and has national implications for energy transition.” He estimates the cost of keeping all four Eraring units operating for another two years would be $300m to $400m. “There is no reason why the government would pay that subsidy” when “there is more than enough firmed renewables capacity in the pipeline” of development in NSW to offset Eraring’s closure. Read more

A surge in renewable energy generation and battery storage projects will allow Eraring power station to close in mid-2025, a new analysis says. The report The Lights Will Stay On: NSW Electricity Plan 2024-2030, produced by think tank Climate Energy Finance, shows an unprecedented number of clean energy projects have come online over the past six months. Read more

A report from a climate finance think-tank says there’s now an even stronger case for closing Australia’s largest coal-fired power station as scheduled next year, thanks to more renewable energy and a growth in battery storage capacity. Read more

Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) quietly released the Energy Security Target Monitor Report it had delivered privately to NSW climate and energy minister Penny Sharpe in October, showing that Australia’s biggest coal power clunker, Eraring, can close on time and there will be no gap in electricity supply. OUr new report, released today – The Lights will Stay On – confirms this, as we map the brilliant momentum in the state on utility scale firmed renewables and consumer energy resources (CER). There is no case for paying hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to keep the ailing, polluting behemoth chugging on. Read more