Sharyn points our a bad example from Turnbull and Frydenberg

From today's Age ........

States threaten to call off energy deal if renewables undermined

The Queensland and Victorian governments are hedging their bets about the Turnbull government’s national energy guarantee ahead of the circulation of key design details expected during the next 48 hours.

Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk with the energy minister
 Anthony Lynham. He said the state would remain ‘resolute in our
commitment to a 50% renewable energy target by 2030’.

Queensland’s energy minister, Anthony Lynham, said on Thursday the state was still reviewing the stakeholder submissions to the Energy Security Board and “those submissions highlight that a lot of critical issues still need to be resolved”.

Lynham said Queensland was still considering whether or not to support the national energy guarantee, and the state would remain “resolute in our commitment to a 50% renewable energy target by 2030”.

Read Katherine Murphy’s story from The Guardian - “States threaten to call off energy deal if renewables undermined.”

‘Worst fears': States prepare to highlight the negatives in Turnbull's energy plan

The Turnbull government's national energy guarantee is set for a rocky reception when energy ministers meet in Hobart, with one state declaring new modelling confirmed its "worst fears", and another saying it was "deeply disappointing”.

Sunrise or sunset for coal-fired power: NEG would
 extend the life of aging fossil fuel plants. 

Federal Environment and Energy minister Josh Frydenberg will front the dinner on Thursday night and is expected to release a paper during Friday's talks that has yet to be shared with state and territory counterparts.

The federal government provided a summary of its modelling for the energy guarantee on Wednesday, claiming wholesale prices would be as much as 23 percent lower than business usual under the dual "guarantee" to cut emissions while improving reliability of the nation's ailing electricity grid.

South Australia Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis indicated his state would reject the plan, which needs consensus from all parties to proceed. For historical reasons, changes to the National Electricity Market also need to pass the SA parliament.

Read Peter Hannam’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “‘Worst fears': States prepare to highlight the negatives in Turnbull's energy plan.”

Dumping clean energy target is 'dealbreaker' for Labor's support

Shadow climate change
minister Mark Butler.

The shadow climate change minister Mark Butler says Labor won’t support the Turnbull government’s new energy policy if it dumps the clean energy target recommended by the chief scientist, Alan Finkel.

With the Turnbull government expected to press ahead with its new energy policy this week after consideration by the cabinet and the party room, Butler issued a clear public warning on Sunday that the loss of the clean energy target meant there was no prospect of bipartisan agreement between the major parties.

Butler said Labor had been prepared to keep an open mind on the clean energy target, even though it was not the opposition’s preferred policy option, because the model had been thought through by the chief scientist and endorsed uniformly by stakeholders across the community.

Read Katharine Murphy’s story on The Guardian - “Dumping clean energy target is 'dealbreaker' for Labor's support.”

Government green bank receives funding request for $1.2 billion coal-fired power plant

Victoria's Hazelwood coal plant
will shut in March.

The Turnbull government's push for taxpayers to finance new coal-fired power stations is facing its first test after an application for support was lodged with the national green bank.

Clean Energy Finance Corporation chief Oliver Yates told a Senate estimates hearing that the agency received an email on Friday from an unidentified company requesting a loan for a proposed $1.2 billion, 900 megawatt coal plant with carbon capture and storage.

Read Adam Morton’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “Government green bank receives funding request for $1.2 billion coal-fired power plant.”