The Department of the Environment and Energy has issued a report revealing Australia’s energy landscape to be more productive and profitable than ever before.
The Department’s Australian Energy Update 2019 covers all types of energy in use in Australia, finding that energy productivity has improved by 20 per cent over the past decade while electricity prices fell in the June Quarter of 2019 to their lowest level since September 2017.
Announcing the report, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction, Angus Taylor said it highlighted that renewable energy use continued to grow strongly, driven largely by technology improvements, falling costs and consumer choice.
“Electricity generation from renewables increased 10 per cent in 2017-18, contributing 17 per cent of all generation,” Mr Taylor said.
“This upward trend continued in calendar year 2018, with renewable generation increasing to 19 per cent of total generation,” he said.
“The share of renewables is expected to continue to grow strongly over the next few years thanks to record levels of investment in 2018.”
He said Australia led the world in per-capita investment in renewable energy — almost double the level of second-placed Japan and triple that of France and Germany.
Mr Taylor said that while renewable energy grew, fossil fuels remained an important part of meeting Australia’s energy needs.
“Coal, oil and natural gas provided 94 per cent of Australia’s primary energy in 2017-18 and 81 per cent of electricity generation in calendar 2018,” he said.
“While the report found we are now using less coal than we used to, coal-fired electricity generation still accounted for 60 per cent of total generation in 2018.”
The Minister said the challenge in the energy sector was integrating the renewables boom to deliver affordable and reliable power.
“That means keeping our existing generation in, and running at full tilt, and supporting complimentary investment in dispatchable generation and storage,” Mr Taylor said.
The Department’s 36-page report can be accessed at this PS News link.
