South Australia’s power crisis: Calls for taxpayer-funded battery storage as electricity debate gets heated
OPPOSITION Leader Steven Marshall has called for taxpayer spending on battery storage, during a heated electricity debate in which both sides traded blame over SA’s power crisis.
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OPPOSITION Leader Steven Marshall has called for taxpayer spending on battery storage, during a heated electricity debate in which both sides traded blame over SA’s power crisis.
Premier Jay Weatherill also quoted in his State Government’s defence a near decade-old opinion column from Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, in which he described as “bullshit” suggestions that it was possible to cut carbon emissions without putting up the price of power.
Mr Marshall said Mr Weatherill had done nothing to stabilise the state’s electricity supply or reduce costs since announcing almost a month ago plans to “intervene” in the market. He said reliable renewables, and reopening the Port Augusta coal power station, must be considered.
“They do not even know what they are going to do,” Mr Marshall said.
“First of all, they should scrap the state-based renewable energy target.
“They need to look at demand management, lowering the total energy consumption here in SA, because it is the peakiness of our demand which pushes up the total price.
“They need to be investing in storage technologies. The simple fact of the matter is that we have all this intermittent renewable energy but it is not available when we actually need to use it.
“There needs to be a market impact assessment for all new renewable energy opportunities in this state. We do not need to stop all renewable energy opportunities for SA. Those that offer baseload, like pump hydro and solar thermal (should be considered).”
Mr Weatherill said the Federal Government was engaged in “policy sabotage” in failing to give certainty on climate action, a move that was dampening investment and increasing prices.
He quoted a 2009 article from Mr Turnbull, in which he attacked former Coalition leader and prime minister Tony Abbott’s direct action policy on climate change as ineffectual.
“You cannot cut emissions without a cost,” Mr Weatherill quoted. “To replace dirty coal fired power stations with cleaner gas fired ones, or renewables like wind, let alone nuclear power or even coal fired power with carbon capture and storage is all going to cost money.
“Any suggestion you can dramatically cut emissions without any cost is, to use a favourite term of Mr Abbott, ‘bullshit’. “The whole argument for an emissions trading scheme, as opposed to cutting emissions via a carbon tax or simply by regulation is that it is cheaper.
“In other words, electricity prices will rise by less to achieve the same level of emissions.”
Mr Weatherill said he was proud of SA’s “leadership role” in relation to renewable energy.
“We believe that this represents not only SA’s energy future but the future for our nation — cleaner energy, more reliable energy and energy which provides an affordable way of ensuring that we meet our energy needs into the future.”
Mr Weatherill also accused Mr Marshall of hypocrisy, saying he had both criticised the Government for a rush to renewables and also not taking the sector seriously enough.