SA power crisis: Renewable energy production in SA at 50 per cent, eight years ahead of schedule
EXCLUSIVE: Green energy production in South Australia has reached record levels, with the state poised to meet its 50 per cent renewable energy target almost eight years ahead of schedule.
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GREEN energy production in South Australia has reached record levels, with the state poised to meet its 50 per cent renewable energy target almost eight years ahead of schedule.
Latest figures obtained from sources including the Australian Energy Market Operator indicate SA has derived 53 per cent of its electricity in the past 12 months from sun and wind.
The last official AEMO update, delivered in August, showed 42 per cent of the state’s power came from renewable sources in the 2015-16 financial year.
It will provide another annual update in coming months but publicly available data collated by the Opposition details a further green power surge, to 53 per cent, in the past 12 months since the Port Augusta power station closed.
Premier Jay Weatherill has previously set a target of achieving 50 per cent green power for SA by 2025, but said publicly that he believed it could be reached much sooner.
Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis said he would await the next official AEMO update on the state’s energy mix before reviewing SA’s progress against the green target.
On Sunday, as gusty weather swept across the state, SA derived a huge amount of its power from wind farms as well as solar panels. For much of the late morning and early afternoon, up to 95 per cent of SA’s power was coming from renewables.
Spot electricity prices, which are not directly paid by households but do factor into annual bill movements, became negative.
Opposition energy spokesman Dan van Holst Pellekaan said the rapid uptake of unreliable and intermittent power in SA was leading to overall price rises and threatening jobs.
“It’s the volatility that is the really big problem,” he told The Advertiser.
“The higher the share of renewable energy in our total generation mix, the more volatile the market will be until that energy can be stored and it can’t be at the moment at scale.
“That prevents investment and pushes up prices for existing consumers.”
Baseload electricity prices are expected to surge countrywide in the next year, and remain highest in SA. There are also warnings of regular power shortfalls in the coming summer.
Mr Koutsantonis called on the Opposition to reveal if it would pass legislation to give him more power to intervene in the electricity market and tell power stations how to operate.
“(Opposition Leader) Steven Marshall has no plan,” Mr Koutsantonis said.
“He instead continues to support dirty coal and has promised to scrap SA’s renewable energy target.
“Unlike our opponents, we believe renewable energy is a good thing.
“The fact that SA is leading the nation is something to be proud of.”
Mr Koutsantonis said his energy plan included measures to support new investment in “synchronous generation”, such as gas, that experts have said is needed to build grid strength.
