Nearly 400 new mines could open by 2035 to meet demand for the minerals used in global electrification. Better recycling can help with supply, but mining’s impacts will have to be better managed.
It’s time for a national grid that serves the public and meets the challenges of a warming world. A new government-owned and operated body should take control of Australia’s electricity system.
To understand the barriers endangered species face when trying to traverse their habitat, it helps to think of their environment like an electrical circuit board.
In Saint-Laurent-Nouan, in the Loir-et-Cher region, one of 19 French power plants.
Ludovic Marin/AFP
Nuclear energy generates 75% of France’s electricity, and ongoing troubles at the new Flamanville EPR reactor have raised crucial questions about its future in the country’s electricity mix.
The two countries have been collaborating in a single electricity market for more than a decade.
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Australians are angry about electricity prices and both the federal government and opposition are proposing to cap them. Will this approach work, and what are the risks?
Who’s in control of what’s flowing in these wires?
D Sharon Pruitt
Two decades ago, the then SA premier, John Olsen, defied a campaign promise and announced plans to privatise the state’s electricity industry. It’s been a high-voltage issue ever since.
Some states are poised for a 500% growth in rooftop solar panels by 2030.
AAP Image/Tracy Nearmy
A new report predicts a boom in household solar and batteries as Australia’s electricity networks move to a more sustainable footing, with some states poised for a 500% boost in rooftop solar.
It’s time to take the political heat out of electricity grids.
AAP Image/Lukas Coch
Privatisation and competition were supposed to make electricity cheaper. Instead, Australia’s quasi-federal energy system has made it easier to pass the buck when things go wrong.
High gas prices have left Adelaide’s Pelican Point power station running at less than half its capacity.
Peripitus/Wikimedia Commons
South Australia’s government was angry about the blackouts enforced by electricity regulators. But with much of the state’s gas power offline, the regulators had little choice.
Solar panels can be both a headache and an opportunity for network companies.
AAP Image/Tracey Nearmy
Managing voltage on the electricity network has always been an issue. But solar panels have the potential to make the situation better, not worse as some have feared.
Renewable energy targets were a controversial topic at a recent COAG meeting between the Prime Minister, State Premiers and Territory Chief Ministers.
AAP Image/Lukas Coch
While South Australia’s storm hasn’t yet been specifically linked to climate change, it’s a reminder of the challenge of delivering essential services in a more variable climate.
Can Kangaroo Island’s pioneering spirit be harnessed in the push for renewable energy?
Dider B/Wikimedia Commons
Kangaroo Island’s electricity link to the mainland needs replacing. But a new analysis shows that for roughly the same price, the island could move to independent, local renewable energy sources.
Australia’s power policies still aren’t heading in quite the right direction.
AAP Image/Mick Tsikas
Australia’s energy policy has lost its way over the past couple of decades, which is unfortunate because the challenges – to move to a low-carbon economy without high prices – have never been tougher.