Renewable Energy Generation Setting Records in Australia
Australia is hitting big numbers in its transition to a clean energy future.
When one reads about the transition to renewable energy, the story often feels out of place compared to what is felt in real life regarding our energy use. It’s not obvious, as these changes are taking place in board rooms or government offices far from where the impacts of these decisions are felt. It often feels like these decisions are falsely soothing our climate anxiety without taking any necessary action.
However, this isn’t always the case. Many countries worldwide are taking genuine, large-scale action to curb our climate crisis. They are showcasing models that can be replicated in other countries that might be more hesitant to begin or accelerate the already underway transition. Australia is one of those countries, and while some of its solutions may be more or less feasible depending on the country its model is implemented in, it nonetheless is taking real action to secure its place in history as one of the few who showed it is possible.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, Australia broke records for renewable energy production, low energy demand, and a decline in greenhouse gas emissions. The National Energy Market (NEM) has reported that 20% of its energy had been produced from wind and solar energy. Overall, wind, solar, and hydropower created 40.3% of the NEM’s energy demand in Q4 of 2022. There was also a day when South Australia received 91.5% of its energy demand from renewable sources. The reason this was possible is because of a large energy infrastructure revitalization; four condensers were built in South Australia, which provide the services that previously had been provided by coal and gas. These changes, along with large-scale wind and grid-grade solar energy, show that renewable energy sources are by far the cheapest form of energy production in Australia.
However, in spite of these changes for the good, coal and gas energy continues to be an important aspect of how Australia powers its country. A price cap has been levied on oil and gas companies, bringing the price down to $93 megawatts per hour, more than half the price in the third quarter of 2022, making renewable energy even more attractive.
Australia has lots of sunlight and tons of space to implement solar energy, which is why solar sector development makes so much sense there. While these changes are not universal, it shows that other countries with similar geography to Australia can implement similar solar solutions. We need nations to prove that the sustainable energy model is worthwhile and economically feasible. With the price of energy being lowered for Australians, it can be an incentive for other countries to implement the solutions that are helping Australia during this time of global climate crisis.