Media

The weekend saw a seismic escalation in the conflict in the Middle East, as the US bombed Iran’s key uranium enrichment facilities. This followed Israel’s campaign of military intervention on the justification that Iran must be prevented from developing nuclear capabilities. The situation represents a dramatic increase in geopolitical instability in the region – a key source of global fossil fuel energy production and exports – and has potentially dire consequences for worldwide energy markets and economies dependent on imports for their energy needs. Australia is one such economy. Read more

“Our governments have repeatedly failed to prevent the gouging of multinational corporations profiteering at our expense, using our public resources,” he says. With the increasing cost of transmission and distribution — often simplified to “poles and wires” — and the need to further modernise our grid, he wants government to embrace what he calls the “massive battery disruption” now underway. Read more

Tim Buckley, Climate Energy Finance Director, says energy costs are rising across the board—network, wholesale, retail—driven in part by long-term […] Read more

According to corporate announcements and financial statements compiled by Climate Energy Finance, a Sydney-based research group, Chinese companies have, since the start of 2023, committed $156bn in outbound foreign direct investment across more than 200 clean technology transactions. This effort is expanding Beijing’s political and economic influence globally just as the Trump administration pursues a hard decoupling from Chinese supply chains and roils global trade Read more

Highlights Federal election has been called this morning – for 3rd May 2025 Budget – not much climate or energy information in the budget, perhaps there’s more to be announced during the election. BYD’s amazing stats. Matt Pollard’s oped in RenewEconomy. 120,000 R&D staff!!! EV momentum Tim shares overall EV market stats, perhaps a lowlight for Tesla. Caroline’s Wang work on electricity generation stats. Highlighting the first two months of 2025 performance. Harry Martin’s International Solar PV and Bess Manufacturing Trends. See Climate Energy Finance report. Read more

Battery storage can turn record-high instances of negative spot pricing in Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) into investment opportunities. That was the view expressed by various panellists and sources at the Energy Storage Summit Australia 2025 in Sydney this week. Tim Buckley, founder and director of the think tank Climate Energy Finance, got the ball rolling on Day One yesterday, flipping traditional views on negative pricing events in describing them as “an advantage.” Australia has “world-leading negative pricing in wholesale markets,” Buckley said, noting that in the states of Victoria and South Australia, negative pricing was experienced for 24% and 26% of last year, roughly four times higher than experienced in European power markets. Read more

Tim explains that power prices are rising because Queensland hasn’t built enough new energy capacity to replace old coal-fired plants. In Queensland, prices are going up by 3-5%, while Victoria’s increase is lower at 1-3%. Read more

Tim, an expert in energy finance, argues that while renewables are not costly, Australia hasn’t built enough renewable energy capacity. He opposes nuclear power as a distraction in Australia, saying it’s too expensive and would raise prices. Instead, he recommends people use rooftop solar and batteries to cut their energy bills by up to 80%. The transition to renewables could happen faster than some politicians say, and individuals can help by using solar power and reducing grid energy use. Read more

Trump has declared an “energy emergency”, scrapped both environmental restrictions on oil and gas exploration and permits for wind farms, all to the benefit of an oil and gas industry that spent $US219m installing his government. So what is the impact? When Trump last abandoned the Paris Accord, many observers argued they would rather have a recalcitrant US alone outside the tent rather than wrecking things within. The UN treaty that drives the global climate response demands consensus in key votes. Having the US side with fossil states such as Russia and Saudi Arabia might have gummed up a cumbersome process even further. Read more

Australian manufacturing will be eroded and power to the sector switched off unless urgent action is taken to reduce barriers to gas investment, the boss of Australia’s biggest energy company warned. Woodside chief Meg O’Neill called for an end to “anti-gas rhetoric” and to scrap Victoria’s ban on certain onshore gas production over concerns supply shortages would hit economy. “The worry I have is when you get to a point where there’s not enough power to go around to meet the needs of all of the power consumers,” she told reporters following her address to the Melbourne Mining Club on Thursday. Read more

While Xi’s Communist Party won’t be rushed as it transitions China’s electricity network, it sees a huge opportunity in the global shift. “China wants to dominate the industries of the future,” says Tim Buckley, the Sydney-based head of Climate Energy Finance, a clean energy think tank. In sector after sector from wind farms to solar panels to battery storage to the rollout of new fourth-generation nuclear power technology, China now leads the world. “I have been watching China for 15 years and they’ve exceeded every expectation I had in terms of their investment and the longevity of their strategic thinking,” says Buckley, who used to be the head of research at Citigroup’s Australian hub. Read more

Tim Buckley, founder and director of Climate Energy Finance, said Australia had clearly seen significant uncertainty in the development of offshore wind, where the Coalition’s overt opposition had undermined momentum. But he said the economics of offshore wind had also taken a hit in recent years, which had been a global trend. Buckley has not seen evidence that investors are pulling out of the development of onshore renewables and batteries as a result of the Coalition’s nuclear policy. A report released by his firm this week found that investment activity over the past six months put Australia on track to deliver on the Government’s 2030 target of 82% renewables share in the energy grid. Read more