ACCC diagnoses energy ‘market’ broken, but prescription will make problems worse: Bandt

Greens Acting Leader and climate change and energy spokesperson Adam Bandt MP today said that the ACCC report shows that treating electricity like a stockmarket has failed, but that it calls for more of the same in the vain hope of a different outcome. Mr Bandt also said the government must rule out the ACCC’s proposals to axe support for rooftop solar and to provide new public funds to gas- and coal-fired power stations

The Senate has backed an Australian Greens motion rejecting any moves by the Federal or SA Liberal Government to weaken South Australia’s position as a leader in renewable energy. The Senate also rejected dismantling SA’s strong renewable energy target.

“If Malcolm Turnbull and Steven Marshall think they can start tearing down South Australia’s strong renewable energy industry, they can think again,” Greens Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young said.

The Australian Greens have announced a new policy for a 20 GW national energy storage target and incentives for households and business to invest in energy storage. 

The policy was launched in Adelaide by Deputy Leader and spokesperson on climate and energy, Adam Bandt MP and Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young.

The Greens would put in place a legislated target of 20 GW of multi-hour storage by 2030, with annual milestones across the National Electricity Market and WA and NT networks.

Greens open to Garnaut energy plan: Bandt

Australian Greens climate and energy spokesperson said the Greens were open to considering Ross Garnaut’s alternative energy plan if it was linked with the reregulation of power prices.

“Ross Garnaut is correct when he says that we need strong climate targets to meet our Paris promises,” said Mr Bandt.

“If strong targets were legislated and the retail electricity sector reregulated, we could bring down pollution as well as prices.

Energy rule maker's days numbered as it wallops energy storage: Bandt

The Australian Energy Market Commission has released its draft determination on a rule change request to reduce the time interval for settlement in the wholesale electricity market from 30 minutes to five minutes.

The requested rule change would reduce the gaming of the system by fossil fuel generators and enable energy storage and demand management to compete with fossil fuel generators on a more level playing field.

The Australian Greens congratulate Repower Port Augusta for its relentless campaigning to transition from coal-fired power to solar thermal.

"This is a win for South Australia and a community that has fought extremely hard to step out of the shadow of dirty coal and into a sunny, renewable energy future," Greens Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young said.

The review of Australia's energy markets handed down today by Chief Scientist Dr Alan Finkel is more interested in fixing a political problem for Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten than in addressing the great issue of our times, dangerous global warming, said leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale and Greens Climate Change Spokesperson Adam Bandt MP.

"The goal should be to stop dangerous climate change, not find a political fix that won’t keep the climate safe or save the reef," Dr Di Natale said.

The renewed push to remove the energy supplement for income support recipients is another assault on people who will be struggling to get by on extremely low income support payments, Australian Greens Senator Rachel Siewert said today.

“The Government is unrelenting in its attempts to erode and weaken the social safety net as a way to balance the books. People accessing the social safety net can’t afford to lose any more money.

Modernising the energy grid and investing in storage technology is the only way to future-proof South Australia’s supply of electricity following more than a decade of disastrous privatisation, the Australian Greens have said.

“The situation in South Australia is an extraordinary example of failed privatisation,” South Australian Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.

“Our state has been let down, time and time again. We need to look at developments in storage technology and invest in the Solar Thermal Power Station in Port Augusta to future proof our network.

Greens climate and energy spokesperson Adam Bandt MP called on the Energy Ministers to reject Malcolm Turnbull’s war on renewables and put in place a plan for a new energy system that can support a shift to clean energy.

Mr Bandt also said the government’s scare campaign on renewables investment ignored the reality that billions of dollars of  new investment will be necessary to replace aging energy generation and infrastructure in the coming years regardless of what type of generation replaces it.