Dr Hewson backs battery storage in calls to redesign state’s electricity system after blackout storms
DR John Hewson is leading the charge for more renewable energy - and wants a system redesign.
- ‘Multiple faults’ led to huge SA blackout, preliminary report
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AUSTRALIA needs more renewables, not less, former Liberal leader John Hewson says.
Dr Hewson joined a range of energy gurus in Adelaide yesterday for a hastily arranged summit on the eve of a state and federal meeting today.
There was general agreement with state environment minister Ian Hunter, who called the electricity system a “creaking, clanking old system that needs to be brought up to date”.
That is in reference to the transmission of electricity, rather than the concrete, and steel poles and wire.
Dr Hewson said there needed to be a redesign of the system; he argued that battery storage was the answer to the intermittent nature of wind and solar panels and wanted the government to ensure all renewable projects have storage capabilities.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and others have taken aim at South Australia’s “aggressive” and “ambitious” renewable energy targets.
South Australia gets about 40 per cent of its power from renewables and is aiming for 50 per cent by 2025.
Asked if that was going too fast, Dr Hewson said: “I don’t think there is any argument for slowing it down.
“In fact we need to do more across the country to achieve the (national target of) 26 to 28 reduction in emissions by 2030.”
That called for a “greater reliance on renewables”, he said, adding that the system needed to be redesigned. More focus on regions instead of states could also help, he said. It remains a mystery why the entire state lost power.
Dr Hewson is spearheading a $1.2 billion solar thermal project near Port Augusta that he says could deliver 24/7 power.
Also at the meeting yesterday were Australia’s chief scientist Dr Alan Finkel and economist and climate change expert Professor Ross Garnaut. Dr Finkel pointed directly at the “massive storm” for the blackout, while Professor Garnaut said there were still some “quite big questions” to be answered, including on voltage and frequency.
“There was no inevitable tripping of the network,” he said. “Pointing blame isn’t what we’re trying to do today… it’s learning from what happened to make the system more robust in the future.”
“It’s the whole system, it’s the mix of generation capabilities, it’s the way the finance market works to encourage players to invest in backup capacity, it’s the interconnects, it’s the software, it’s taking advantage of new technology… there are no simple solutions.”
The Climate Council said experts at the meeting agreed climate change was fuelling bigger storms, and that upgrading energy infrastructure was necessary to cope with the changing climate.
“There is a strong consensus among Australian energy experts that renewable energy is critical in securing Australia’s future and there must be a national plan to modernise our energy system,” Climate Council chief executive Amanda McKenzie said.