‘Energy productivity’ is the new buzz-phrase in energy and climate policy, what even is it?
Tony Abbott and Greg Hunt at last year’s Green Army launch. Funding for the initiative has been slimmed down but is still more than A$700 million.
AAP Image/Britta Campion
The Federal Budget 2015 makes little mention of emissions reductions or renewable energy, but does feature funding boosts for drought assistance and the Great Barrier Reef. What else is in?
Australia’s gas market is entering a time of change: increasing supply, such as coal seam gas, can provide certainty.
Ben Jenkins/Flickr
Australia’s “looming gas shortage” - the basis for calls to deregulate coal seam gas - may not be real after all. But gas prices are still set to rise, and that’s an area where coal seam gas could help.
The long view: Australia is bidding to boost energy productivity by 40% by 2030, but other countries are already doing more.
Mattingbn/Wikimedia Commons
Australia’s federal government wants to boost ‘energy productivity’ by 40% by 2030. A good idea, but the plan needs to cut energy use, not just deliver more economic bang for the energy buck.
Car makers pay close attention to the emissions regulations in the countries they export to.
Everett Kennedy Brown/EPA/AAP
Unlike many countries, Australia does not have mandatory greenhouse emissions standards for cars - meaning that manufacturers are free to sell their least efficient, most polluting vehicles here.
Rooftop solar panels are disrupting Australia’s electricity market, and competing with networks.
Jason Wong/Flickr
James Whitmore, The Conversation and Michael Hopkin, The Conversation
The federal government’s keenly awaited Energy White Paper is firmly focused on cutting prices and red tape, and boosting industry competitiveness - and less so on climate change and renewable energy.
Power costs are moderating after sharp increases, according to an energy White Paper.
AAP/Melanie Foster
Consumers must play a role in reducing their electricity bills, the government says.
Australian Treasurer Joe Hockey hosting the recent G20 finance ministers’ meeting in Sydney, a lead-up event to November’s Brisbane Summit.
AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts
When Australia hosts the G20 Leaders’ Summit in November, a top agenda item for its “Brisbane Action Plan” will be “practical actions to improve productivity and competitiveness”. So here’s a good place…
Brisbane’s annual City of Lights show, which is sponsored by an oil and gas company.
Flickr/Wei Lun Koh (some rights reserved)
From flicking on a light to travelling around town, our lives are utterly dependent on energy. That’s why it’s so surprising that Australia has been so bad at thinking about our country’s future energy…
If you don’t deal with road transport, you’re really not dealing with emissions.
Rachel Wray
Much of the recent debate over Australia’s new Energy White Paper deals with climate change, the planned growth of Australia’s coal and gas exports, and the future of electricity sector. And although when…
Energy planning is complicated, but China is way ahead of us on creating a future energy system.
Triin Noorkoiv
John Mathews, Macquarie Graduate School of Management
Over the past few weeks China and Australia have both released white papers on energy. The two documents could not be more different. Australia’s white paper is largely about our continued obsession with…
Excluding nuclear from Australia’s future energy scenarios doesn’t give the full picture.
Gold Auraque
The Energy White Paper 2012 (EWP2012), released by the Australian Government last week, seeks to map out a strategic policy framework for future energy supply. One of the major goals of EWP2012 is to provide…
Australia could soon have millions of small electricity generators.
absentmindedprof/Flickr
The 2012 Energy White Paper has much to commend it. In particular, the far greater acknowledgement of the need to shift to clean energy sources is a fundamental shift from previous White Papers. The emphasis…
Do you value this? The Energy White Paper doesn’t.
Green MPs
Burn it all. That is the plan in Australia’s new Energy White Paper. Released yesterday by Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson, it talks about responding to climate change while planning the…
The Federal Government’s draft energy white paper outlines a future where Australia still depends on fossil fuels.
AAP
The release of Australia’s draft energy white paper has outlined a future where Australia continues to be largely dependent on fossil fuels, embraces uranium and expands existing deregulation and privatisation…