Hey Reader, in today's edition:

Summit lead-up to 2035 target
Set and forget on solar
Electric vehicles in for a rough ride

Summit season gets underway

The “clock is ticking” to organise what could be “the largest diplomatic event in Australia’s history” the Smart Energy Council said, as it released a report calling for the government to “continue to throw everything at” its bid to host the UN’s COP31 climate conference in 2026 in partnership with the Pacific.

The report offers a number of ‘Idea Snapshots’, equating to potential legacy outcomes from COP31 for Australia, if it hosts. They range from a market-shaping instrument for green minerals to a new Australian-championed donor effort to help the Pacific move towards 100% renewable energy.

But the first hurdle Australia as COP31 host would have to navigate, the report says, is responding to the “inevitable shortfall” of the collective ambition of this third round of NDCs, due later this month, in helping to slow temperature rises.

“The last time the world confronted such a stark shortfall in its ambition was at COP26 in Glasgow at the end of the Paris Agreement’s first five-year cycle. At the time, the negotiations resolved on a call for every country to reconsider their level of their ambition over the coming year... this is the kind of mandate that Australia might need to address calls for given the shortfall likely to be highlighted at COP30.”

Thom Woodroofe

Smart Energy Council senior international fellow

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese this week heads to the Solomon Islands for the Pacific Islands Forum, which this year has been closed to external partners including China and the US. On the table for discussion are the climate crisis and the Pacific Resilience Facility, to which Australia committed $100 million for climate adaptation in 2023. (RNZ)

Beware the 'set and forget' mindset on solar

Almost $340 million in underperformance is being lost annually because of a “maintenance gap” in solar Power Purchase Arrangements (PPAs).

Daniel Lazarus, co-founder of Industrias Services Group with Clean Energy Council award winner Jamie Thorncraft, isn’t talking about hosing down the red dust on your installation.

He’s putting the spotlight on an issue for Australia’s fastest-growing energy asset class: physical failures that can have a cascading impact on energy commitments.

And he blames a lack of enforcement of standards, not any failure in training or certification.

Read full article

EVs in for a rough ride

A road user charge for electric vehicles has been set in motion after federal, state and territory ministers agreed on Friday to undertake further work on the measure, one of several pushed at last month’s Economic Reform Roundtable. (SMH)

In a joint statement, the treasurers said reforms would ensure “more equitable treatment across vehicle types and provide certainty to support investment”. They would also be phased to ensure they didn’t harm EV uptake and the climate benefits coming with it.

Treasurers also agreed to expand national competition priorities to include heavy vehicle access reforms in order to reduce or remove regulations that disadvantage electric heavy vehicles.

The agreement comes as analysts predict EV sales in the US could be cut by up to half when tax credits come to an end later this month. (Yahoo Finance)

Catch Up

Capital

Australian renewable energy developer Someva Renewables acquired the proposed Hills of Gold Wind Farm in NSW from ENGIE for an undisclosed sum. The project, which would include 62 turbines and generate around 372 MW, was approved by the NSW Independent Planning Commission in 2024, but is being challenged in the NSW Land and Environment Court by Tamworth Regional Council. In a statement, Someva managing director Jamie Chivers said company executives had been in the community discussing the project with locals. “We believe the Tamworth Regional Council’s decision to continue this appeal is a questionable use of local ratepayers’ money,” Chivers said.

Integrated lithium and renewable energy business Vulcan Energy (ASX: VUL) signed a supply contract with Canadian electrochemistry company NORAM Electrolysis Systems for technology required as it builds out its Lionheart Project in Germany’s Upper Rhine Valley. The project will produce battery-quality lithium from naturally heated subsurface brine, with a co-product of renewable energy.

Projects

Electricity grid managers around the world could learn from the airline industry in dealing with connection backlogs, according to a new report from the Boston Consulting Group. The report recommends bottlenecks in connection studies and physical grid delivery be dealt with using measures common in the airline industry, such as queue skipping for pre-check-in customers, aircraft entry by boarding group and passengers trading tickets with those willing to pay in case of overbooking.

Victorian minister for climate action, energy and resources Lily D’Ambrosio has officially cut the ribbon on Tilt Renewables' 100MW/200MWh Latrobe Valley battery energy storage system (BESS) near Morwell. (Energy Storage News)

Policy

Lobby group Manufacturing Australia called for the government to bring in a mechanism aimed at cutting the wholesale gas price to $10 a gigajoule, alongside plans for a reservation and other measures to boost supply. In its submission to the government’s Gas Market Review, the group, which includes BlueScope Steel, Brickworks and Tomago Aluminium said East-coast manufacturers were currently paying between $12 and $19 for long-term gas supply deals, with prices tripling over the past decade. (SMH)

Meanwhile, local manufacturing exemplar Battery Renaissance could have survived with a grant from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s $500 million Battery Breakthrough Initiative, according to CEO Brian Craighead, if the delayed program hadn’t been launched just days after the factory was put into voluntary administration. The company also wasn’t helped, Craighead told the AFR, by the Clean Energy Council lobbying to have the 5% tariff for imported batteries scrapped. The surviving technology arm of the business will press on with a focus on the defence sector. (AFR)

“It is a great pity to see that Australia has been inundated with cheap foreign batteries, using Australian lithium processed elsewhere, while our own – our only – battery manufacturer has not been given the opportunity with an off-take agreement to show what it is capable of.”

Dr Jens Goennemann

Managing Director of the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre

Inconsistencies in standards across renewable energy and building and construction will be looked at by state treasurers as part of ongoing productivity reforms. After meeting on Friday, federal, state and territory treasurers said they would take further action on recognising international standards and identify opportunities to harmonise state standards. Treasurers said they would also pursue a national licence scheme for electrical tradespeople to remove unnecessary mobility barriers “without reducing standards”.

California watered down a bill that would have required the state’s biggest utilities to provide data to enable them to build virtual power plants into their grid investment plans. The state has a goal of load shifting 7 GW by 2030, but its demand flexibility capacity has barely grown over the past two years and remains at just over 3.5 GW. (Canary Media)

Germany has already met its 2028 goal for reducing coal-fired power generation, its Federal Network Agency said, meaning it will not be issuing any coal-fired operation bans this year. Almost two thirds of Germany’s electricity comes from renewables and the country plans to completely phase out coal-fired power by 2038. (Bloomberg)

Regulation

Two businesses were caught out and punished by the Victorian Essential Services Commission for claiming energy efficiency certificates for work that didn’t take place. Zerowatt has been suspended from the VEU program for three months and banned from creating certificates for any type of energy efficiency work. LEDSaves has had a six-month restriction placed on its accreditation, with the ESC refusing registration and ordering the surrender of more than 4,000 certificates, valued at more than $400,000.

Technology

Wind energy broke a record that had stood for three years delivering an instantaneous share of 147.3% of South Australia electricity demand early on Saturday morning. The record came after system security rules were changed to allow a single gas generator for system strength needs. (Renew Economy)

What's On

September 9
Smart Energy Queensland

Environment Minister Murray Watt, Greens Leader Larissa Waters, Windlab Chief Development Officer Nathan Blundell, First Choice Solar Founder Peter Berkers, Solar Training Centre CEO Steve Kostoff, QUT Energy Storage Research Group Director Joshua Watts, and Renewables and Distributed Energy General Manager at Ergon Energy Network and Energex Glenn Springall will speak at this expo in Brisbane.

September 9-11
Women in Energy & Renewables Summit 2025

NEM Review Panel Member Paula Conboy, Head of Stakeholder & Community Engagement at Squadron Energy Kath Elliott, Tilt Renewables CEO Anthony Fowler, Endeavour Energy CEO Guy Chalkley, Ausgrid Group Executive for Transmission Development and Growth Kelly Wood, AEMO Executive General Manager of Policy & Corporate Affairs Violette Mouchaileh, Champions of Change Coalition Program Director Olivia Tsen will speak at this sold-out event in Sydney.

September 9-11
Gippsland New Energy Conference

Superpower Institute Director Ross Garnaut, GunaiKurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLaWAC) Chair Troy McDonald, the Net Zero Economy Authority’s Energy Industry Jobs Plan Review Leader Professor Roy Green, Iberdrola Executive Manager Engagement & Social Licence Nicola Pero, and Marinus Link Head of Community Stakeholder Engagement Mark Lindsay will speak at this event in Traralgon.

September 11
SACOSS Energy Forum

Australian Energy Regulator Chair Clare Savage, Energy Consumers Australia Advocacy and Policy Executive Manager Adam Collins, and Monash University Professorial Fellow Ron Ben-David will speak at this event in Adelaide.

September 11-12
24th Energy in WA Conference

WA Program Director for The Superpower Institute Jessica Shaw will lead a panel on the nuts and bolts of how flexible, integrated solutions are being delivered, featuring Executive GM Commercial & Growth at AGIG Rachael Smith, APA’s GM Power Development Gary Bryant, Enscope President Phil Ireland, Accure’s Australia Head Alan Coller and AEMO’s System Operations expert Paul Elliott at this event in Perth.

September 15
Queensland Clean Energy Summit

Corrs Chambers Westgarth Partner Melissa Grintner, Windlab Chief Development Officer Nathan Blundell, Aula Energy Head of Development Anthony Russo, regional mayors Greg Williamson and Andrew Smith, and Jo Sheppard from the Queensland Farmers' Federation are among the line-up at this Clean Energy Council event in Brisbane.

September 16
The Price of Power: The Future of Australia's Energy Sector

Bluescope Chief Executive, Climate Change and Sustainability Deborah Caudle, Alinta Energy CEO Jeff Dimery, AGL CEO Damien Nicks and Australian Energy Council CEO Louisa Kinnear will speak at this American Chamber of Commerce event in Melbourne, with R. Blair Thomas, CEO of US energy investment firm EIG speaking via Zoom.

September 23
AEMO's Annual Results

Australian Energy Market Operator CEO Daniel Westerman and Executive General Manager for Finance and Governance Vanessa Hannan will outline progress against strategic priorities and initiatives, financial results for FY25 and priorities for FY26.

September 24
Updated net zero pathways for Australia

The Net Zero Australia Project team from the University of Melbourne, the University of Queensland and Princeton University will present their latest report on the roles of renewables, energy storage and firming including nuclear, carbon capture and storage and other complementary technologies at this hybrid event.

Send your tips, comments, questions to editor@theenergy.co

Level 1, 60 Martin Place, Sydney, NSW 2000
Unsubscribe · Preferences

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here

The Energy

Paving the way for a Pacific COP

Summit season gets underway

Beware the 'set and forget' mindset on solar

EVs in for a rough ride