Geoff,

I'd make two points. I hope you will respond.

First, there is a lack of valid evidence to support the contention that 2C to 3C increase in global mean surface temperature this century would negatively impact the global economy or human well-being - refer: IPCC AR5 WG1 Chapter 3, NAS review of "damage function" used in IAMs, Tol (2013) Figure 3 (free access to Working Paper here: http://www.copenhagenconsensus.com/sites/default/files/climate_change.pdf ). Ignore the energy line on the chart for now. I expect it is probably incorrect. We can discuss why if interested.

Second, carbon pricing almost certainly will not succeed, for reasons I explain here: https://anglejournal.com/article/2015-11-why-carbon-pricing-will-not-succeed/
For the similar reasons no policies that will damage economies will be politically and economically sustainable over the time they would be required.

Two points from this essay.
Don`t put all your eggs in the one basket.. (not original I know)
and
Why won`t politicians stop lying.
Full stop.

Where the hell is Don Quixote when you need him.

What a wordy way of saying renewable power generation is a catastrophe, forced on us by idiots too dumb to see the CO2 global warming scare is a fraud, or, more likely with this one, looking for an avenue for crony capitalism opportunities & a quick buck.

We recently saw a ratbag socialist [Labor] government in South Australia blowing up a perfectly useable coal power station. Yes that's right, one of those brilliant engineering wonders that supplied cheap reliable electricity, while feeding the flora. This stupidity probably bought them a few green votes, but guaranteed expensive power for those who can't afford it.

I wonder how long it will be before we see sensible governments blowing up, [down] these ugly useless windmill towers?"

Most points well made and cogent! The only renewables that support either base load and affordability? Remain solar thermal, which can and does compete on more than equal terms on rollout costs, reliability and base load requirement, with coal, is solar thermal. And here we only need look at working examples in California or Arizona, for substantiated evidence from private entities, investing/risking their own money.

Moreover, the fuel is forever free! the only drawback is the energy wasting and costly grid/distribution system it needs to be connected to.

After that we have homemade biogas, generated on the premises of the users, created in modest digestors, and then used to reliable provide power, whether the wind blows or the sun shines! Every family produces enough biological waste to power their domiciles 24/7 and create endless free hot water. Further, if food scraps are added, able to produce a salable surplus. However if the gas is scrubbed and the diesel replaced with a totally silent ceramic fuel cell, then the available energy quotient is doubled as is the energy coefficient, which at 80% is the best in the world? And that option also includes endless free water and complete energy independence! And the very reason our "politicians" aren't behind or regulating its timely roll out! TBC.
Alan B.

Why do politicians lie about renewable energy (which has proved to be not all that energetic)? Because they are ignorant. They are arrogant and and cannot back down after they have accepted and added to lies. That's all I've got time for, but the list is probably endless.

This is a very wordy article lacking in rigour and so is well below the standard of Geoff Carmody's usual output. That said, to make a couple of points -

1) The standard capacity factor (average output) of windfarms is about 30 per cent. Its more for offshore installations, about 35 per cent I think. PVs are about 18 per cent.

2) Electricity grids typically keep a certain portion of generating capacity in instant readiness, in case something goes wrong with the stuff being used. The reserve requirements when renewables are on the network are much larger, and complicated by the fact that wind can cut out any time with no "inertia". When conventional plants go down they take a while to stop spinning, but wind farms go off straight away. Real problem.

3) All planning for the network has to be done on the basis that there will be times when none of the renewables will be contributing at all, and those times may be the periods of heaviest demand.

4)Given all that it is obvious that repeated assurance by activists that renewables are cheaper that conventional power is straight nonsense. They require additional investment to use and are a nightmare to manage once in operation.

Cont. If we were really serious about climate change and doing something practical about it without harming our economy, just the very opposite, we'd be rolling out, walk away safe, tried and not found wanting, molten salt, thorium reactors. Fifties technology rejected solely because there was no weapons spin off!

Look, if I were to step outside my door and fill a cubic metre box with dirt. From tha dirt, using ultra simple gravity separation, I'd be able to extract around 8 grams of ready to use as is, abundant thorium, and at an approximate cost of $100.00! Then power my home, car and produce all my material wants for the next 100 year with that 8 grams of carbon free thorium. And that my friends is just a dollar a year!

We have enough in the dirt to power the planet for 1,000 years and thousands more if we mine igneous rock.

Abundant and arguably the most energy dense material on the planet; and carbon free power with huge side issue benefits.

Finally in summation, These reactors work at normal atmospheric pressure, so, will never produce a pressure related explosion! Moreover, thorium is less radioactive than a banana!

The only reason we don't already have it is, I believe, prevaricating politicians serving self interest, rather than the real national interest? 40 MW reactors can be mass produced in a factory, and contained ready to use in a stock standard shipping container, then shipped and used anywhere, given the coolant and heat transfer medium is liquid salt!

So, for the first time we have two cheapest ever options than are as reliable as we can ever want, safe clean and CHEAP! And not reliant on a gold plated and unreliable national grid!

And the very sovereign risk reason we don't have truly affordable, nation building, drought proofing power!?
Alan B.

Why does the author still promote the unsubstantiated hypothesis that anthropogenic greenhouse gases cause catastrophic global warming? Like the supposed scientists who peddle that hypothesis, it is apparently because he has a vested interest in so doing.

Otherwise he would have to argue that there is no scientific or economic justification for investing in renewables, and acknowledge that the Australian energy crisis is purely of the federal and state governments’ own making.

“Don't invest in renewables at all without investing in the back-up capacity needed for reliability.”

Given that the politicians foolishly decided to go down the path of promoting investment in renewables, they should have listened to the engineers and ensured that the existing coal-fired capacity was maintained or supplemented so as to provide back-up capacity for unreliable renewables.

Instead, the SA and Victorian governments chose to eliminate back-up capacity by closing-down coal-fired stations that could have been retained at relatively low cost until such time that they could be replaced by more efficient coal-fired stations. Gas-fired power stations are suitable for back-up capacity, but not as efficient as coal-fired for providing base load. Besides, in large part because of flawed government policies, we have precarious, high-priced gas availability for Australian users.

Consequently, although the politicians will not admit it, we have an energy supply crisis – not only is reliability at high risk, but market prices have hit the roof. Disruptions to the Whyalla steelworks, BHP’s Olympic Dam and Oz Minerals operations combined amounted to around $0.5 billion due to the September 2016 SA blackout; Victoria’s Portland smelter suffered around $100 million damage in the December 2016 blackout that affected 200,000 SA users; NSW’s Tomago smelter had to ‘power down’ to avoid major power disruption in SE Australia in a February 2017 heatwave; just today a brickmaker announced it was considering moving offshore because of exorbitant gas prices.

Which entrepreneurs in their right minds would invest in new businesses in Australia today?

We must have Co2 in the atmosphere, wow ever thre is a limit to that amount.
As in past times climate change has taken place, why is that.
In past times the world was more volcanic than at present. And from time to time released an oversupply of Co2 into the atmosphere and upset the balance of nature, this is shown in ice core samples from Antartica.

This time around climate change can not be blamed on volcanic action alone, for a couple of hundred years man has been ramping up his release of Co2 into the atmosphere to a point where nature has been compromised to the extent of changing weather patterns around the world. We are in the grip of another event that has happened many times before, this time man is to blame.

Polititions have been known to lie,sometimes for their own benefit, sometimes because of their own belief of church teachings. Both are very destructive to the people that put their trust into a political party. Polititions that lie have hidden agendas,s. As we all know and regrett.
We trust their lies to be truths. Only to find it was all a scam to defraud the populous into a fraudulent election. And what does their own party do about it. In their own interest they knife the perpetrator and say that is justice.
When the tables turn such perpetrators will be dealt with properly.

Australia needs a price on carbon release into the atmosphere.
Coal power is dead meat.
Get with it or get out. The world future is in jeopardy, because of mans greed for money.

Science says the worlds Co2 emmitians have stabilised. A good first step. Unless emmitians are greatly decreased to 1970 levels. We are in for a torrid time. With a 50 year lag time there is gigantic storms to come for a long long time before a 50year decrease will occur.

Nature has been compromised to the point of climate change. Let's hope volcanic action has ceased forever otherwise there will be no return.

"Unless emmitians are greatly decreased to 1970 levels. We are in for a torrid time. With a 50 year lag time there is gigantic storms to come for a long long time before a 50year decrease will occur."

This is pure speculation on your part, and on the part of anyone else who shares your view.

All politicians are motivated by various political / popularity agendas .. their decisions are rarely taken primarily on the basic of informed factual advice.

So what if 'storage' / batteries is required to make renewable energy more reliable ? It's only using the same principle as dam storage to tide us between rain events .. and no-one whinges about water storage in dams.

The first step to fixing the problem is remove the power system from
the control of politicians and give control to the engineers.

The second is to force everyone to read a paper by the Upsalla
University's Global Energy Group on oil and coal reserves and supplies.

Take notice of the profits of the major oil companies.
Note the reports that give a suspicion that we have reached world peak coal.
Then design our power generation with these thoughts during the next
twenty years by which time there will be no point in arguing.

It is inevitable that wind, solar cannot do the job on its own.
Forget batteries, to store for 5 overcast still days means
you have to spend six times as much on generation & batteries.
Pumped hydro is a good scheme but you need more than twice the
generating capacity of the daily electricity consumption if it is to
be the only backup. That storage can be multiple weeks worth of power.

Curmudgeonathome said;
When conventional plants go down they take a while to stop spinning,

Once their speed falls they are well already disconnected from the grid.
Multiple machines are running in parallel and when one attempts to
go slower it is driven by the others. At that time it is no longer
providing its rated power and if the power to keep it up to speed
is too much it is disconnected.
Up to that time they are all rotating at the same speed.
ie they are no longer in sync.