Media

The US/Israel war on Iran is the latest geopolitical disruption to trigger a domestic cost-of-living crisis. Petrol and diesel prices are soaring, and the pain is spreading through mortgage rates, grocery bills, and falling super balances as markets slumps. This is no longer just a pump-price issue; it is a systemic shock to the Australian economy, repeating the fossil fuel hyperinflationary hit we all collectively suffered with Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is time for Australia to focus and value energy independence. Read more

The widening conflict in the Gulf has exposed Australia’s extreme reliance on imported oil. With minimal fuel reserves and a $12 billion annual diesel subsidy to mining, energy security has become a national security emergency. The last several days have underscored the existential risk Australia runs by remaining addicted to imported fossil fuels. On 28 February, the US and Israel launched a preemptive war against Iran. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed. The conflict is now widening regionally, impacting energy markets worldwide. Yet the Australian government provides a $12 billion annual subsidy to keep us addicted to imported diesel, undermining our clean energy-powered Future Made In Australia, energy security and decarbonisation objectives. Read more

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Australia’s renewable energy sector has urged the re-elected government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to step up the renewables energy transition after it secured a convincing majority in the federal election. Albanese will lead a majority Labor government in a second term after a thumping election win on the weekend. Read more

“The single biggest opportunity for Australia is to enhance and pivot our relationship with China,” Tim Buckley, director of think tank Climate Energy Finance (CEF), tells ESN Premium ahead of Solar Media’s Energy Storage Summit Australia 2025. Buckley believes Australia’s positive trade relations with China will increase the investability prospects in the country’s energy storage market, which could prove vital in Australia’s shift to a green economy. 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

Woodside Energy’s CEO Meg O’Neill sounded a self-serving alarm last week about the risks for Australia of the US’s new administration’s “drill baby drill” mantra, concluding that the ever-looming east coast gas supply shortage demands urgent government actions to accelerate gas exploration and development. 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

The suspension of the group came just days after its biggest member, BlackRock, said it would quit the organisation. In a letter to its clients, the New York-headquartered asset management giant said membership of the net zero initiative had “caused confusion regarding BlackRock’s practices and subjected us to legal inquiries from various public officials”. Read more

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Tim Buckley speaks with Jaynie Seal about the newly released bogus costings for the LNP’s nuclear plan, which the CSIRO confirmed last week would cost twice the price of firmed renewables Read more

In the light of Trump’s election in the US, Climate Energy Finance director Tim Buckley framed China’s dominance in clean technology manufacturing as an opportunity rather than a threat. “China wants to partner with us,” Buckley said, noting that Australia’s status as China’s leading trading partner provides a strong foundation for technology transfer and manufacturing collaboration. Read more