Aiden we are probably more on the same side but
But what happens to our economy if we stop using and exporting coal over night
Can we right now dump coal all together as a source of power
Then tell me how many, no truly, would vote for such a thing
More importantly how many, even on my side, would vote against it
Let the feeble view renewable s are too costly go it is untrue
And ignore one posters view the sun only shines for eight hours a day so solar panels will not work
KNOW solar battery's leap forwards every year, and make long ago first generation ones look ancient
But the subject is coal, the future will see change and one day an end to its use, that day is not here

Aiden said;
>The power stations comprise thousands of parts,
That doesn't make them any more reliable.
>each of which can get the three "Rs".

Repair, Replace or Refurbish.
If taking over a rundown power station that is what you do.
It may mean a years work before the reliability improves but it will
improve.

In the timescale ahead of us is there a choice ?
The timescale is about three months.
All the coal handling plant is in place and needing little work
probably, mostly conveyor belts, all the storage and control is in place.
The idiots claiming they are clapped out and should be closed now
are just stupid. I seriously doubt they have ever seen the inside of a
plant like a power station or similar bulk handling plant.
Sure if you had an old plant and plenty of spare capacity available
you might opt for financial reasons to rebuild.
But that is not the real world, we are looking at sitting on the floor
of lifts for a couple of hours in a few months.

Aiden, one simple question. If renewables are so cheap and coal is so expensive why did prices increase? Further if you say it’s the big power companies can we have a fixed, mandated price for power to reduce it to what it was? I am being facetious of course.
With your system prices will keep going up, this years blackouts will be blamed on coal and more coal will be closed. When we crash the system and the whole country faces what Victoria faced courtesy of John Cain so much debt and not enough electricity I am stumped! Perhaps you can paint a picture of this golden age we are approaching due to your delusion?

I don't wish to blame women.
But I think there is something to be said for displacing policies based on logic with policies based on emotion.

With regards to coal and energy:

I'll happily tell everyone I love coal just to go against everyone else, but there's a basis of merit for it.
Coal has enabled me to have a life that I couldn't have otherwise had, and I will not remove myself from this fact.

It creates jobs and puts money in government coffers;
So they can fund all their moronic progressive agendas.
When they come up with something better, I'll gladly go for it.
- But I won't shoot myself or others in the foot prior to that day.

I think we could do a lot better with energy, if only we actually actually tried.
I think there's a whole bag full of updated and improved methods for energy creation, if only we had the will and determination to make it happen.

Sadly yet again the totally untrue claim renewable s drove power prices up
Any thoughtful person knows gold plated delivery wires did part of it
Privatization,selling to those wanting profit did the rest
Feed back, numbers here continue to hark back to the early days, when good money was paid for that, not any longer my six cents subsidizes those who have no panels
No we will not have over night new fuels, no closing of service stations over night, coal will continue to be used but too decline
Renewable,s now have a future profit makers are in the market and its growth will not be stopped

Dear thoughtful Belly; the first I heard of gold plating wires was from George Brandis on Q & A one Monday night. Because Gillard and Rudd let that happen on their watch! It is dishonest for you to blame this and then say part. The facts are a whole lot more gold plating will be needed to accomodate wind and solar in the future. Bring on solar and wind bring on gold plating because sometime the bill will arrive as it did for Victoria after John Cain. Then your mob will slink away with massive pensions and we will have that to pay as well as for a new proper power grid. As envisioned by John Monash in the 1920’s.
Read the first line of this whole posting One Nation, remember? When things are really tough a Truth &Justice Commission could make the current crop pay dearly!