Nice diversity of sources Sierra, not.
I think your examples could be characterised as cherry picking. Yes people are free to make career choices and catch the early wave of the decades-long renewables rollout.
From personal experience large companies like AGL, GE etc can afford to be agnostic when it comes to selection of technology. And they like high power prices, as some of it feeds through to their bottom line.
Distributed micro-grids are very exciting and costs of inverters and batteries falling 20-30% per year.
I agree that new batteries are competitive with new peaking gas turbine plant, but base load renewables are still 1-2 decades away from providing competitive base load power.
The variation in output of solar renewables between Summer and Winter is huge un acknowledged problem, which cannot be met with pumped storage without decades of permitting and new construction, (and not in my back yard thank you).
My suggestion to policy makers, (not normal for me to engage with Eco-evangelists), is to reconsider the closure of black coal fired base load plant, till we catch up, and/or encourage use of better quality coal such as Galilee basin in 1 or 2 new USC-HELE plants here, and the many being financed and built throughout Asia.
Count on $1-2000/kW as cost. I have worked in power industry for 35 years including renewables and all forms of fossil. I thought you would know that cost, which has been static in $terms for last 30 years, so has fallen in real terms, mainly as thermal units get larger and more efficient.
Combined cycle gas turbine generation is better suited to intermediate loads, than base load. Also, gas is more useful in industrial heating applications than other forms of heat so while we have a shortage, I would prefer to see it diverted to that application.
Why is South Australia looking to augment the most renewable grid in Australia with 250MW of gas fired generation capacity?
Hint: power prices are one thing, and affect export industries like metals more than consumers.
For the latter it is more of an annoyance, and much less than what they spend on food and entertainment, except for the really low income people, who often rent their homes, and not in position to specify a 8* dwelling. The enthusiasm for renewables is least amongst that group. When it gets really exciting for consumers is when the grid becomes truly third world in its reliability.
I like the utility of electric power. Great things are possible when you flick a switch and the power stays on till you, or some form of auto controller turn it off.
I will buy a small domestic BESS (battery energy storage system) with about 4 kWh hours of storage , (unlikely from Tesla who seem to love too much the taxpayer subsidies and slick gimmicks) as an investment with a 10 year payback. I am OK with that, but please don't take away my utility connection, as I don't like stumbling around in the dark looking for matches to light candles, and if I have to buy two inverter/chargers and allocate half my backyard to batteries to achieve the reliability of AC supply I have had for past 50+ years from the grid, which already exists, then my ROI would stretch out to unacceptable duration.
If you really fear AGW this is what you would do. If you just hate coal or love new toys, suit yourself but don't ask me and the rest of the community to pay for it,
So, Sierra,
what about documenting those coal subsidies?
For renewables subsidies, look to Arena finance, mandatory purchase of GC's by retailers to meet State imposed RET's and activist led enthusiasm for "ethical investments" resulting in boards virtue signalling at the expense of shareholders and passive fund investors.
Cheers
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