Page 13 - System Plan News Today

10 May 2021 The Australian Energy Market Operator says the rate of wind and solar additions on the country’s main grid, and the huge and growing pipeline, means it is “well ahead” of its most optimistic renewable transition scenario of 90 per cent renewable energy penetration by 2040. AEMO chief systems design officer Dr Alex Wonhas said in a statement on Monday that a further 300 generation and storage projects, totalling 55,000MW, were currently proposed across the NEM, nearly double it...

4 May 2021 Transmission companies ElectraNet and Transgrid have made their final pitch to the regulator for the proposed new $2.4 billion link between South Australia and NSW, arguing it is essential for Australia’s clean energy transition and will unlock significantly bigger benefits than previously thought. The new filings to the Australian Energy Regulator for the 900km, 800MW Project EnergyConnect (PEC) transmission link is the last major hurdle in what has been a typically drawn out regu...

4 May 2021 Australia will experience more and more days powered by 100 per cent renewable electricity as the growth in wind and solar uptake continues to surge, a key government advisor on market reforms has told an industry briefing. The Energy Security Board has commenced a consultation process on a proposed package of reforms to Australia’s main market for electricity, which it says will help manage a rapid transition currently underway from transitional coal and gas generators to a new mi...

3 May 2021 The Morrison government has confirmed it clashed with a key energy market body over gas price assumptions, suggesting that the government applied pressure in an attempt to advocate for a bigger role for gas in the energy system. Speaking to a senate estimates hearing on Monday, officials said that there had been a disagreement between the Morrison government and the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) over gas price assumptions to be used in the Integrated System Plan, with the ...

27 April 2021 US media outlet Axios is reporting that a broad and powerful coalition of environmental groups will be ramping up pressure on US President Joe Biden to implement an effective policy mechanism to realise a rapid shift in America’s electric grid. The Biden administration went to the recent election with an ambition to achieve 100% carbon free power by 2035, but has so far not begun the process of creating legislative instruments to realise this change. The ambition aligns with the...

Oklahoman High-capacity commuter rail lines converging in downtown Oklahoma City and including service to Will Rogers World Airport have taken a step toward being realized. Endorsement by the Regional Transportation Authority board on Wednesday of the RTAs Transit System Plan was one of two major developments this week. The Legislature passed and sent to the governor a measure to limit liability for transit system partners such as railroads that contract to allow commuter trains to operate o...

"More gas units will not increase the need for gas generation." Transmission company doubts Angus Taylor's 1,000MW Kurri Kurri gas plant will be built.

13 April 2021 Australia must rapidly decarbonisation while delivering affordable, reliable power. Renewable Energy Zones (REZ) will be important in doing this. A REZ is a cluster of generators sharing transmission infrastructure to provide a lower-cost and faster way of delivering new, renewable generation into the system. Despite their obvious benefits, REZs haven’t yet been delivered. A key reason is rules and regulations – collectively, a relic of last century’s energy grid – that do...

8 April 2021 Major new transmission network projects are now in doubt after the Australian Energy Market Commission formally rejected a request from network companies to allow for increased early revenues from key network upgrades. The decision could potentially kill off plans to build major new network links identified in the Australian Energy Market Operator’s Integrated System Plan, considered crucial for further investment in wind and solar projects and the transition to a renewables-domi...

5 April 2021 Western Australia’s main grid distributes as much electricity as the South Australian and Tasmanian grids combined. It currently uses 75 per cent fossil fuel energy and contributes 10 million tonnes per year to Australian’s Co2 emissions. This is the third of my series of articles on WA’s Whole of System Plan (WoSP) for electricity to 2040. You can find the others here and here. In this article, we will compare fossil fuel use and emissions under two WoSP scenarios compared t...