Category Archives: Electric Power and Energy

The power of coal in Germany and South Australia

Posted on April 17, 2021 by Rafe Champion

DANG WIND DROUGHTS!   The Germans closed down some coal plants and then fired them up again eight days later. German coal closed down – for 8 days But they press on with the Energiewende, the green energy transition. Germany has … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Global warming and climate change policy, Rafe | 9 Comments

What was that about RE getting cheaper all the time?

Posted on April 15, 2021 by Rafe Champion

A bit of a jolt from Tesla. Elon Musk’s 2019 proclamation that Tesla’s integrated solar roof would grow “like kelp on steroids” is looking more optimistic than ever this week, with reports emerging in the US that the company has … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Rafe | 7 Comments

Vikki Campion guest post. Antony’s electrifying ev pitch

Posted on April 3, 2021 by Rafe Champion

Labor leader Anthony Albanese steps out of an electric car. LABOR has returned to its coalmining Jerusalem … sort of. In the party’s hip crusade for Elon Musk has come an epiphany — discount coal-fire-powered cars for all who can … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Guest Post | 54 Comments

Thanks to South Australia we have a glimpse of the future power supply

Posted on March 31, 2021 by Rafe Champion

Contemplate the future prospects for hot dinners and industrial development. What do we see? Today we had a wind drought across the southern states. Queensland was not affected as much as the others, and in the afternoon the two wind … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Global warming and climate change policy, Rafe | 29 Comments

Where Biden is going, and where it will end up

Posted on March 29, 2021 by Rafe Champion

A SERIES OF PIECES STARTING WHEN BIDEN WAS PRESIDENT-ELECT,  published in the Asia Times, a nuanced contemplation of the program, ending with the likely effect of the Green New Deal on the power supply. Watch out! Biden wants to save … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Global warming and climate change policy, Go Woke Go Broke, Rafe | 17 Comments

David Bidstrup guest post. Hydrogen hopes.

Posted on March 27, 2021 by Rafe Champion

A few days ago the local Adelaide paper ran a story about SA Labor’s plans for a hydrogen fuelled future. Apparently a hydrogen fuelled power station will “cut electricity bills and create thousands of jobs”. The objective of the plan, … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Guest Post | 48 Comments

ACT beats the City of Sydney to unveil Australia’s first public hydrogen refuelling station

Posted on March 27, 2021 by Rafe Champion

Eat your heart out Clover Moore! The commitment to integrate the 20 hydrogen vehicles into the ACT government fleet follows a commitment by the territory government to use its purchasing power to support greater uptake of zero emissions vehicles. This … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Rafe | 23 Comments

The hard part of getting to net zero. Demonstrated by South Australia

Posted on March 25, 2021 by Rafe Champion

UPDATE AT 10.30PM   In the late afternoon the windmills in SA were pumping at 40% of plated/installed capacity and power was flowing to Victoria. Since dinnertime a wind drought has struck and the wind capacity is down to 3.3%, that … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Rafe | 46 Comments

UPDATE: Garnaut’s vision & a hard look at electric cars and hydrogen

Posted on March 22, 2021 by Rafe Champion

UPDATE: AUSTRALIAN STATES RACING TO RE RUIN Tasmania, the battery of the nation, is leading the way from SA, the wind leader. “Australia is blessed with an abundance of renewable energy resources and we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to harness … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Rafe | 32 Comments

Craig Brooking & Michael Bowden guest post. Firming RE power with batteries

Posted on March 19, 2021 by Rafe Champion

Firming the New England Renewable Energy Zone with Batteries As intermittent generators continue to penetrate the electricity system, firming capacity is required to stabilize the system to compensate for sudden reductions in intermittent, weather dependent electrical energy. The NSW Electricity … Continue reading →

Posted in Electric Power and Energy, Guest Post | 38 Comments