Opinion: Gas a critical interim energy source in move to renewables

When much of Queensland was blacked out by a power station explosion, it wasn’t renewables that came to the rescue, writes Des Houghton.

You could be forgiven for thinking there would have been a soaring demand for lovely green renewable power after the catastrophic explosion and fire that disrupted the Callide power station causing widespread blackouts in May.

Alas, it was not wind or solar power that came to the rescue, it was gas.

“The figures don’t lie. In Queensland’s hour of need it was gas that came to the rescue,” Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association CEO Andrew McConville said.

In fact the use of gas to generate power doubled to more than 20 per cent. Solar was hovering around 5 per cent and wind power much less.

“Gas has once again shown its versatility and reliability, literally keeping the lights on,” he said.

“Gas can do things that renewables simply can’t, including providing feedstock to manufacturing plants and helping create everyday products such as clothes, computers, phones, fertilisers and vital medical equipment such as heart valves.’’

The Australia Pacific LNG facility on Curtis Island, Gladstone

The association’s Queensland chief Matt Paull said gas was worth $11.1 billion to the Queensland economy each year, and directly and indirectly employed more than 47,000 Queenslanders.

That is something for Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to ponder as she continues to demonise hydrocarbons and criticise federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese for visiting a mine.

Paull said the sector has also invested more than $70 billion in Queensland’s economy to develop the natural gas and LNG industries.

Our gas plays a role in reducing emissions. The Federal Government estimates Australia’s LNG has the potential to lower emissions in LNG importing countries by around 170 million tonnes of carbon dioxide each year by providing an alternative to higher emissions fuels – the equivalent of almost one-third of Australia’s total annual emissions.

Renewables will have their day, but not yet.

Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association CEO Andrew McConville