A new report from the Grattan Institute has underlined the failure of current policies to push Australia down the path of a clean energy future Giles Parkinson, editor of RenewEconomy, reports.
Renewable energy
Crikey Says: Crikey says: our energy future
“The door is closing…I am very worried – if we don’t change direction now on how we use energy, we will end up beyond what scientists tell us is the minimum [for safety]. The door will be closed forever.”
The web of vested interests behind the anti-wind farm lobby
A network analysis of links between the principal voices involved in demonising wind farms in Australia has been circulating in recent weeks and reveals connections between some of the principal wind farm opponents.
Carbon taxes and the ghosts of politicians past
As the latest carbon price package makes its way through parliament, Fergus Green takes a trip down memory lane.
Will Australia miss the global solar boom?
Ferguson has mostly been interested in protecting the supply of fossil fuels or export or use at home, although he has shown an increasing interest in solar of late, writes Giles Parkinson from Climate Spectator.
Political snippets: Sacrebleu! The French repeal female pants ban!
The equal rights for women campaign has reached a new level in France.
Political snippets: Winds of change fail to sweep up Gillard
The photo opportunity of Julia Gillard at a Crookwell wind farm did not go exactly as intended.
Essential: voters convinced carbon pricing will hurt them
Things aren’t looking much better for Labor after its carbon pricing announcement: voters believe the scheme will be bad for them and won’t work.
Parkinson: a green light for renewables
At a recent discussion in Sydney about the prospect of nuclear energy in this country, Martin Ferguson reflected that Australia may have no choice but to go nuclear if it was unable to find a clean energy alternative, writes Giles Parkinson.
Parkinson: carbon chaos in Canberra
There is good reason why the government did not release the details of its carbon pricing package before the weekend, writes Giles Parkinson, of Climate Spectator.
Parkinson: low-carbon economy not as hard as it looks
Our hung parliament presented, for the first time in living memory, an opportunity to deal with the substantive policy issues ignored in the campaign, writes Giles Parkinson of Climate Spectator.
Just do it: 14,000 voters give their say on renewables
A document that outlines 14,000 conversations about climate change from across the nation says that the majority of Australians want a stronger emphasis on renewable energy and support businesses being held responsible for their pollution, reports Amber Jamieson.
Parkinson: are Australian utilities smart enough?
There is no shortage of new competitors keen on grabbing a share of game-changing technologies such as smart meters, smart appliances and electric vehicles, writes Giles Parkinson, of Climate Spectator.
climate change CCS is doomed, yet we’ve pumped millions in to it
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is often seen as coal’s redeeming feature and saviour, and governments have spent millions on it. But if it’s so effective, why did the last budget cut over $600 million from CCS projects? asks Dan Cass.
Budget breakdown: the holding pattern on clean-tech investment
In the first of a series of post-budget reports, Fiona Armstrong and Laura Eadie from the Centre for Policy Development explore options to encourage innovation and roll out less mature renewable energy technologies.
Renewable energy can power (nearly all of) the world
Nearly 80% of the world’s energy needs could be met by renewable energies by 2050, according to a new report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), writes Amber Jamieson.
Renewable energy targets: 10 years on, will we ever hit them?
Here’s a question: when do you expect Australia will be able to produce 25% of its electricity needs from clean energy sources. By 2020? 2030? 2050? The numbers crunch numerous ways, says Giles Parkinson.
Climate policies slashed to pay for a natural disaster
Gillard’s obsession with producing a surplus in 2012/13 is one thing, but the symbolism of slashing $675 million from climate change policies to pay for a natural disaster in the hope that it is a “one-off” is quite another, writes Climate Spectator’s Giles Parkinson.
Australia is sleepwalking into an oil price trap
Relying on the economic demise of others to keep petrol prices low at home isn’t really good news, writes Dr Michelle Zeibots, Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology, Sydney
Bob Katter, energy corridors and conflicts of interest
Bob Katter has been spruiking an “energy corridor” project for nearly 18 months, but has only once mentioned that a relative is at the centre of it. Bernard Keane and Wendy Bacon report.
Video 
VIDEO GALLERY: The business of being Green
Energy entrepreneurs across the globe are not waiting for politicians to get their acts together on climate change. Check out this video gallery which showcases individuals whose ideas are creating new ways of producing renewable energy - plus a few dollars along the way.
Forget the ETS, Labor needs to get its Chifley on
The ETS looks like it is staying on the shelf, much to the chagrin of green groups. Never mind, Labor should instead tap into former PM Ben Chifley’s nation-building mythology and consider a large-scale renewable energy project, writes Leigh Ewbank.
A climate storm for investors
A moment is approaching when science and markets will collide, but then merge, with chilling consequences for investors who miss the moment and great excitement for those who are well prepared, writes Paul Gilding.
Decarbonising is a mammoth task
The height of the decarbonisation hill Australian governments need to climb this decade is underlined in the electricity industry’s just-released annual data, writes Keith Orchison.
Our renewables ‘revolution’ is not what it seems
It seems that for every winner in a renewable energy scheme, there is a loser, writes Giles Parkinson from Business Spectator.
