A huge spike in renewables has put the electricity grid under critical pressure at a time when mounting weather crises threaten to undermine the resiliency of the energy system.
The Energy Security Board's annual Health of the National Electricity Market report released on Monday stressed the importance of a resilient electricity system following the bushfire tragedy that ravaged the east coast over summer and warned intense weather will become more common.
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| Kerry Schott is the head of the Energy Security Board. Its future hangs in the balance. Credit: Louie Douvis |
"The increased severity of weather events, especially over summer, coincides with an ageing, and hence less dependable, coal generator fleet."
The report also flagged fears that a bigger take-up of variable renewable and distributed energy resources, such as solar and wind, will make it more difficult to maintain the security of the system. Wind and solar is forecast to make up 40 per cent of national electricity by 2030, up from 16 per cent in 2018-19.
Voltage control is a particular concern for cities where more than 20 per cent of homes have rooftop solar, such as the majority of Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide, where the demand for grid power can drop almost to zero in the middle of the day as solar fills demand. This can change suddenly with changes in weather, the report said.
Melbourne residents face the threat of major blackouts as a heatwave makes its way across the eastern parts of the country.
"Networks must have more visibility of the security of their operations and flexible sources of supply and demand response when it may be quickly needed to maintain both frequency and voltage stability."
The Australian Energy Market Operator had to intervene to maintain system security 75 times in 2018-19 compared to 32 times the year before. Reliability was a particular concern during the height of summer in Victoria, NSW and South Australia.
Total emissions across the national electricity market, which includes Queensland, NSW, ACT, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia, had fallen 15 per cent since 2005.
There will be a further fall by 2030 under forecasts presented by the council, to 41 per cent below 2005 levels, following the expected closure of older coal and gas plants.
In January the government's leading energy security adviser Kerry Schott, who is chair of the Energy Security Board, said national leadership was needed on emissions as renewables put pressure on the grid. She called for more hydroelectricity, battery storage and gas.
The council expects the Snowy 2.0 project that will complete in the mid-2020s to help reliability in the long-term, as will funds provided by the government to the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
The report also found that retail prices were declining with affordability improvements largely due to more solar use and energy efficiency.
Energy Minister Angus Taylor said there were ongoing challenges for the sector when it came to maintaining the safety and reliability of electricity supply when wind and solar was not available, noting the report advocated for the development of hydrogen as a commercial industry.
"This recognises the significant opportunities presented by hydrogen," Mr Taylor said.
The NSW and federal governments recently struck a $3 billion deal to increase gas supplies, reduce carbon missions and upgrade the energy grid in an effort to help bridge the gap while the investments in hydrogen, batteries and energy storage increase.
The government has further invested $4 million into a feasibility study for a 1GW "high efficiency, low emissions" coal-fired power station in Collinsville saying it would help meet the power needs of northern Queenslanders. Labor has criticised the decision, saying the private sector have no interest in these expensive projects and taxpayers money shouldn't be used.
Links
- Government energy adviser calls for 'national leadership' on emissions
- Malcolm Turnbull says Coalition should return to the National Energy Guarantee policy
- Morrison government strikes major energy deal with NSW
- What is 'real' action on climate change?
- Australia emits 1.2 per cent of the world's greenhouse gases. So who must act to cut emissions?
- Two coal-fired and hydroelectric power projects being explored for Qld
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