Budget relief promise implies rising cost of renewable energy

There can be no better example of the utter failure of Labor’s energy policy than in energy costs (“A reality check on power supply”, Editorial, 5/4).

In the space of less than two years, we have gone from a promise of $275 cuts in our power bills to promises of energy bill relief in the upcoming budget.

The drive to net zero and renewable energy has had the opposite effect to that spruiked by Labor and should be dumped immediately before any more damage is inflicted on the economy.

Mary Hackshaw, Northwood, Vic

We have a pressing need to establish a truth-telling commission focused exclusively on federal politicians.

The first order of business would be to seek the true costs of renewable energy, and its reliability, as our primary energy source.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Energy Minister Chris Bowen should be called on to provide the full costing for renewable energy, including transmission costs, taxpayer subsidies being paid to support renewable energy, the long-term economic losses of taking over large areas of productive land, and the environmental and social cost of our lost wilderness and wildlife.

This endeavour should also detail the negative impact on people of the unsightly wind and solar facilities, including transmission lines, in our country areas.

We need to know the number of real jobs lost, direct and indirect, when shutting down existing electricity-generating facilities and an accurate forecast of long-term jobs created by renewable energy.

Albanese and Bowen should be called on to detail the negative long-term economic impact, and expected job losses, arising from losing significant industries due to the high cost and unreliability of renewable energy.

They should also be called on to detail the cost and environmental impact of disposing of renewable energy facilities when they come to the end of their useful life and the projected costs associated with replacing these facilities.

Finally, we need to know the cost and capacity of large-scale batteries that will be needed to ensure we have continuous and reliable power.

Australians will bear the full cost of renewable energy and we deserve to be told the whole truth on this matter.

Brian Barker, Bulimba, Qld

Big coal users like China and India continue to ignore climate implications, but such issues dominate Australian public discourse and everyday life.

Given this near obsession, it would be useful if some smart organisation worked out how much our climate action costs each year and how much this will change the world’s climate.

I suspect the answer would be: it costs many billions and achieves nothing. But we won’t know until someone does the sums.

Doug Hurst, Chapman, ACT

We must not forget the real issue while comparing the long-term costs of both renewables versus nuclear and the risk of putting Australia’s energy in one basket, namely renewables.

The debate that’s needed must focus on the long term – 50 to 100 years – accurate forecasting of domestic and industrial needs and, critically, the upfront and ongoing replacement capital cost of infrastructure.

It must also assess the geopolitical risk of having a supply-chain reliance on any one nation.

Unless the government opens the debate to include a proper analysis of renewables long term, its ability in isolation to service baseload needs compared to a sensible mix that includes nuclear, it’s a waste of time.

The simple truth is failure to lift the ban on nuclear energy thwarts the commercial players’ interest, thus politicising the discussion and, frankly, getting nowhere.

Ian C. Murray, Cremorne Point, NSW

The media reports on energy seem to be presupposing that the case against coal (and gas) is an all-or-nothing argument.

Climate change is happening, the evidence is there for all to see, but climate activists are not calling for the complete and immediate abolition of coal. They just want its usage minimised to reduce environmental damage. There will no doubt be a need for coal-fired electricity for years to come where no practical alternative exists. Hysterical doom-and-gloom statements help no one.

Ross Hudson, Mount Martha, Vic