Bellevue Gold has installed one of the world’s biggest off-grid arrays, with 24 megawatts (MW) of wind, 27 megawatts of solar and a 15 MW, 30 MWh battery, supported by 9 MW of diesel capacity and 15 MW of gas capacity. It has an average load of 12 MW from its mining and processing facilities.

“Renewable energy penetration is currently sitting comfortably at the upper end of the targeted renewable energy penetration rate of 80-90 per cent, and aligned to the forecast of being the most renewably powered off-grid mine in Australia,” the company said in a statement to the ASX on Thursday.

Bellevue Gold is one of a number of off-grid miners who are achieving high levels of renewables with their newly installed wind, solar and battery hybrid systems.

Even previously arch renewables critic Gina Rinehart has backed Liontown Resources with renewable penetration rates of over 80%.

As renewable technology improves more and more industries carn't help but come on on board.

Well, they probably had to do the renewable energy bow and scrape to get the mine approved. I've read of a number of those systems getting lots of problems and ending up running on diesel alone. The gas backup might be for when the diesel generator needs repairs or servicing.

Now here's a thought: SMRs could power mining operations and remote locations, so wouldn't that be a good reason to remove the nuclear ban, or doesn't cult leader Albo let you have an opinion beyond a vague notion that it could be part of the future? Such an accommodating chap your cult leader is.

Imagine how the raving anti-nuclear lunatics at the environmental departments would react to SMRs? New age Luddites for sure.

Ditch the grifters.

I'm sure that in many if not most operations some forms of renewables are being used, even just to power living areas, fridges and lighting, lithium batteries are getting cheap and the cost of bringing fuel to remote locations to run generators would be a constant and significant expense. It would be foolish not to be using renewables in some form.

Hi AC

"It would be foolish not to be using renewables in some form."

Yes they have appeal, but they also have to work. Did you know that the Waratah battery destroyed a transformer during a test to see whether it could cover the sudden power variations you get with wind and solar? I just checked on a hybrid system that was promoted with great fanfare a few years ago. Now it runs on diesel. I suspect that sudden large power variations that you get with intermittents have the potential to do a lot of harm.

You are I are members of the peanut gallery here, not secret party influencers, or part of the grifter lobby, which spent $177 million last year trying to convince the punters how wonderful renewables were.

I cannot understand why some want a nuclear ban when smrs could be an effective low carbon energy source for remote locations and mining operations.

Hi WTF,

With the anti-renewable mob now running with their pants on fire, could that be a new source of energy. After all they have transitioned from relying on hot air to now being reliant on their burning duds, to produce the heat to fire up dem boilers! How pathetic is this mob!

Hi Paul,

I'm not anti anything, but I do consider the challenges and economics of a wind and solar powered grid. I look at the 10 billion plus in annual taxpayer handouts and wonder how wind and solar are cheaper, yet power costs are soaring.

I think there is a nasty realisation that replacing coal generation with wind and solar is far more expensive and complex than the grifters led us to believe.

Remove the ban and ditch the grifters.

Five years after Matt Kean blurted out that getting rid of coal would mean household electricity bills would be $130 cheaper per household per year, the price of electricity has skyrocketed from between $380 and $530, depending on which thieves you are dealing with (NSW). About $190 dearer per year.

When asked when prices would come down, Klown Kean said, “when we get more ‘renewables’”. The problem is, “the price of coal”.

When Kean and his ilk depend on lies for their outlandish incomes, they lie.

One of the other clowns involved in the $275 lie, Chalmers, now says, “But there’s no use pretending that there won’t be pressure on household budgets from high electricity prices in the interim".

Everything these arseholes say is a pretence.

The galahs keep saying that coal - that along with gas, is the only thing keeping the lights on - needs to disappear to make electricity cheaper!

The Brits were told the same lie, but now that they have no coal power since last year, electricity prices are 60% higher.

Nukes are never going to happen so get over it. You could say the libs got nuked promoting nukes.
SMR only exist as 100 KwH / day and very short fuel cycle before changing.
Albo is your leader, the peoples of Australia clearly elected him as our massier. Some just cannot get over the fact that their party was ruined by imaginary visions of things that go against the majority of voters.
Spreading insults is no way of opposing something that is impossible and against the will of society.
Comparing AU against elsewhere in the world does not fit any situation and never will. AU is one of a kind and unmatched any where.

Even AEMO doesn’t endorse net zero by 2025.

They disagree with Bowen on prices coming down and the “cheapness” and “reliability” of his rubbish delusions, even warning of the real danger of blackouts - within a year! Bowen will probably be overseas when they occur, bumming for COP.

Everything Bowen says is the very opposite of reality.

There is now talk of extending the life of Eraring - again! So much for replacing coal. Bugger all is happening, except for yackety yack and funny face pulling by Bowen, who has now gone part-time on his portfolio. Same money, of course, plus travel and accommodation out of the country.

Like all things in a democratic, free enterprise country, energy should be in the hands of the market, in which the best, the cheapest, most reliable product wins.

But, Australia is looking less and less like a democratic free enterprise country by the week. And, sadly, the last election indicates that is what the average Australian wants.

WTF?

I really do not know why people do not seem to understand what transition is all about.

It was only a short period of time ago that the renewable alarmists on OLO were bagging South Australia's energy transition.

However, now "The Transition Plan for System Security, published on Monday by the Australian Energy Market Operator, identifies South Australia as the only state grid which is not facing a system strength deficit in coming years."

"Even AEMO doesn’t endorse net zero by 2025." ttbn, I don't think anyone does. That's what senility does to the brain. Nursey, please up the old blokes does of Doz-Ezy to a pack a day, 10 tabs just doesn't cut it anymore

What are the happy little users going to do when their windmills and solar panels wear out?

The Australian Energy Council reports that “the cumulative volume of waste from small-scale and large-scale solar projects will reach approximately 685,000 tonnes by 2030”, when they have to be removed from rooftops and paddocks.

Some of the stuff from renewables can be recycled; but at the cost of $10-$20 to recycle one solar panel, against $2 to bury it, what’s going to happen?

There are already piles of old windmills laying about in NSW forests - revealed on TV a couple of years ago. But, we are told by the grifters that renewables are a “net positive for the environment”.

Windmill blades are “almost impossible to recycle”. Into the landfill with them, asbestos and all!

And the only thing true about Labor’s ‘vast numbers of jobs’ created by renewables will be the demand for garbage collectors to deal with the waste. (Robert Weir, ‘The solar and wind waste that the Albanese govt doesn’t want you to know about’).

Congratulations ttbn!

It's good to see that you are starting to use a number of sources to help with your posts.

For a while there I though you were getting all your information from youtube loonies - even loonies have bills to pay I guess.

It's great to see you embracing the Australian Energy Council.

As their website clearly states: "The AEC supports reaching net-zero by 2050 and is committed to delivering the energy transition for the benefit of consumers."

Net zero? Energy transition?

Careful though, some of the old-timers on here might start calling you woke.

More asbestos confirmed in windmills at the $1 billion Clark Creek wind “farm”.

Wealthy windbag, Twiggy Forest, had to give up his green hydrogen nonsense, now he’s got asbestos. Another gift from China. ‘Low risk’, they claim. We all believe that of course, coming as it does from that wonderful country Albanese has a good relationship with. Nothing to see here, folks.

The asbestos-riddled pads will be removed (they reckon), but where will they be disposed of? China or Australia? And, nobody has a clue how many of these monstrosities blighting the Australian countryside are also affected, and how much it will cost to fix them, and who is paying.

Windmills flogged to the dopey country of Australia by Denmark have also been found to have asbestos in them.

It has actually been illegal to import asbestos-containing goods into Australia since 2003. Betcha Albanese will find an excuse not to take any action against China. Not sure about Denmark.

Renewables without subsidies would probably not have got off the ground.

The government auditor has claimed that the $2.3 billion in handouts from the Treasury are illegal because they didn’t have Jim Chalmers' written approval.

It’s Rafferty’s Rules in Oz. Surely the Treasurer should have been aware of the written approval requirement? But, then again …….

The $300 p.a subsidy to householders, an attempt to disguise the shocking rise in power bills is part of the mess.

The Treasury itself revealed the Constitutional breach in October. The breach was the flinging of other people’s money around “without appropriate written ministerial authorisation in place for the senior official to approve the payments on the Minister’s behalf”.

Talk about amateurs! A larger financial breach has not been investigated by the auditor-general this year.

The news came on Monday after a grilling by Senator James Patterson.

If the Treasury had not “self-reported”, the breach would have stayed hidden. The Treasure is supposed to be looking after public interests, and ensuring that his department is doing the right thing.

Given Jim’s performance as Treasure though, we can’t expect him to know about this Constitutional requirement - or much else.

The excuse for Jimbo is that the states did the right thing, so he made a only “technical” error.

"SMR only exist as 100 KwH / day and very short fuel cycle before changing."

Geez, who told you that? Cult leader Albo or his grifter buddies?

"Albo is your leader"

Not my leader, but certainly a stupid C ("C" for China) selling out the nation's future to help out his grifter buddies.

Hey, but here's a bit about China's pilot smr that scares the poo out of the grifters:

"China Huaneng Group, one of China's major generators, is the lead organization involved in the demonstration unit with 47.5% share; China Nuclear Engineering & Construction (CNEC) has a 32.5% stake and Tsinghua University's INET 20% – it being the main R&D contributor. Projected cost is $430 million (but later units falling to $1500/kW with generating cost about 5 ¢/kWh). The HTR-PM rationale is both eventually to replace conventional reactor technology for power, and also to provide for future hydrogen production. INET is in charge of R&D, and was aiming to increase the size of the 250 MWt module and also utilize thorium in the fuel."

Do you know why the grifters are so scared of nuclear? It's because nuclear can provide 24/7/365 power: They would sell power via long term contracts and the grifters wouldn't get a look in. The scam would end, and the only people bothering with expensive rooftop solar would be anti-nuclear nutjobs.

End the ban and ditch the grifters.

ps. Did you hear about all the poor little birdies that the grifters killed building a transmission line? Now there's a thought for your Christmas dindins.

Hi Fester,

You seem rather rabid with your opposition to renewable energy, are you politically motivated? Many on the right of politics, oppose renewable's based on their opposition to the progressive left, who by all accounts support a transition. Regardless of holding a staunch political view, long term, fossil fuels will become exhausted, and alternatives will be needed. In your opinion what are those alternatives, if its not wind and solar, what is it, and when should that transition begin?