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Beyond Zero Emissions

This is an updated version of what was published in the Sydney Morning Herald today.

Solar energy benefits the state by providing electricity at much cheaper rates than those of traditional sources, writes Matthew Wright.

It may appear counter-intuitive, but getting millions of solar panels onto rooftops saves more money than it costs. Feed-in tariffs enacted by state governments have enabled ordinary Australians using their savings to build a solar power station at home benefiting the community.

When those solar households who had saved to get their panels installed under the solar feed-in tariff programs export their solar production to the grid, which occurs mostly during higher demand daytime periods, they are given a slightly higher than average retail rate for the electricity they are selling. The prices they have been paid are relatively meagre when compared with the ridiculously high rates paid to big coal or gas power plants.

At the same time that little solar households who have invested their money in a rooftop power station are being paid between 44¢ and 60¢ per kilowatt hour, the old power companies with their dirty belching coal and gas plants are receiving as much as $12.50.

In other words, the coal and gas guys are being paid as much as $11.90 more than a home solar generator for just one unit of electricity, or 20 times the solar price.

Media Release 18 Nov 11

WorleyParsons has publicly promulgated a falsehood in relation to BZE. WorleyParsons state in their media release dated 10 November 2011: "Beyond Zero Emissions (BZE) engaged Worley Parsons to prepare a report to analyse the life cycle GHG emissions for Australian gas compared to other energy sources. BZE and WorleyParsons subsequently agreed not to proceed with this report."

It is true that BZE engaged WorleyParsons to prepare this report. The engagement is in writing, and a copy is attached. However there has been no agreement not to proceed with this report. Let WorleyParsons show any evidence or written agreement in support of their public assertion that the parties subsequently agreed not to proceed.

An explosive report demolishing gas industry claims that coal seam gas is "clean energy" has been suppressed by the Board of the company that wrote it.

The report was commissioned by the not for profit renewable energy research group Beyond Zero Emissions and fully completed in September.

Worley Parsons have a $580 million contract with Queensland Gas Company for engineering and procurement services for the company’s massive Queensland Curtis LNG project.

"We have a contract for the delivery of this report. The report has been completed, and the fact that its findings are inconvenient for the gas industry and Worley Parsons is not a good enough reason for its suppression. It is of the utmost importance that the proper scientific research into the true emissions impact of coal seam gas sees the light of day" says Matthew Wright, Executive Director of Beyond Zero Emissions. "We need to clear the air on gas emissions."

This report supersedes a report selectively and repeatedly quoted by oil and gas industry lobby group APPEA, but hidden from public view until its release under pressure a few days ago.

Environment, health and community groups have gathered in Sydney today to discuss the future of wind energy in NSW. As electricity prices continue to rise for most NSW households, the groups have welcomed reports from South Australia that wind power is cutting pollution and lowering the wholesale market cost of electricity.

Nature Conservation Council of NSW CEO Pepe Clarke said, “NSW should join South Australia who are not only benefiting from the reduced emissions of wind power but cheaper energy prices at the same time. Wind power is a mature technology capable of providing a proven, cost‐effective way of meeting the NSW government’s 20 per cent renewable energy by 2020 target”.

Beyond Zero Emissions strategic director Mark Ogge said, “Right now, there are more than $10.4 billion worth of wind farm proposals waiting for the green light to generate enough power for more than 2.3 million homes. A huge opportunity for new investment and job creation awaits NSW”.

100% Renewable campaign spokesperson Lindsay Soutar said, “The state government’s own research, together with local community surveys of more than 12,500 people show high levels of public support for renewable energy. Nearly 90 per cent of people we spoke to supported the introduction of more renewable energy as a way of managing rising energy prices”.

Beyond Zero Emissions is pleased to have been awarded the prestigous opportunity to be pictured on the front of the Sydney Whitepages by Telstra owned directory publisher Sensis.

BZE Executive Director Matthew Wright is pictured on top of the Sydney Theatre Company with their new largescale rooftop solar array with the Harbour Bridge in the background.  The array was partly sponsored by Suntech CEO and China's third richest businessman Dr Zhengrong Shi and former UNSW solar photovoltaic researcher.

The photovoltaic group that used to host Dr Shi is the global leader in photovoltaic cell performance holding efficiency records in the lab.

The Gillard government has ignored the most successful policy in the world for rolling out renewables deployed and reducing carbon emissions: the German renewable energy Feed-in Tariff.

Internal analysis by Beyond Zero Emissions shows that the use of a Feed-in Tariff to get solar panels onto every rooftop in Australia would add just 1.2 cents to the cost of electricity over 20 years.  This is the total cost of getting solar panels everywhere and ultimately reducing electricity bills for many Australians.

By 2015 with appropriate support leading up to that date we could have solar panels installed generating cheaper electricity than buying fossil fuel electricity at the household or business meter.

Matthew Wright said:

“For a rooftop solar revolution Australia needs a Feed-in Tariff.  This will complement appropriate mechanisms for wind power (RET or Feed-in Tariff) and large baseload solar thermal with storage (Feed-in-Tariff) and deliver the 100 percent renewable energy economy that AEMO will model for us.”

“Simply put, Feed in Tariff is the cheapest mechanism to actually succeed in getting carbon abatement as seen in the Productivity Commissions report on Germany,” added Wright.

Contact: Matthew Wright, Executive Director, +61 421 616 733

Beyond Zero Emissions welcomes the new Clean Energy Finance Corporation to support the rollout of renewable energy in Australia.

The $1 billion guaranteed funding for renewable energy is welcome. However the $1 billion unspecified portion per year needs to explicitly exclude fossil gas. Conventional gas and especially coal seam gas is dirty. In fact, due to dodgy accounting on fugitive emissions coal seam gas impacts are likely to be 80 to 150 times higher than claimed by industry.

Beyond Zero Emissions Executive Director Matthew Wright says:

“The worst thing we can do for the environment at this juncture is to back fossil gas. The building of a gas plant will lock in up to 60-years of gas burning, causing between 50 and 110 percent of the emissions of existing coal plants. This is due to new accounting on the total lifecycle of coal seam gas.  If Australia has a gas future it will be based on an eastern seaboard coal seam gas boom. Beyond Zero Emissions calls on the government, greens and independents to not allow the coal seam gas false start.”

“Gas is a diversion not a shortcut. Coal Seam Gas is a flashpoint dividing communities around the country,” says Wright.

Contact: Matthew Wright, Executive Director, +61 421 616 733