{"id":73624,"date":"2022-07-06T14:00:23","date_gmt":"2022-07-06T04:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=73624"},"modified":"2022-11-09T12:42:27","modified_gmt":"2022-11-09T01:42:27","slug":"bold-steps-needed-to-power-australia-and-the-region","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/bold-steps-needed-to-power-australia-and-the-region\/","title":{"rendered":"Bold steps needed to power Australia and the region"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n

Halfway between Alice Springs and Darwin is a 10,000-square-kilometre property formerly used by the Packer family as a cattle station. In the 20th century, this land was part of Australia\u2019s vast and economically vital agricultural industry. Now, it\u2019s set to become a key element of a new Australian economic vision. The land is flagged for a massive project that\u2019s attracted support from prominent Australian tech billionaires and has been assessed by Infrastructure Australia as ready for investment<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sun Cable\u2019s proposed\u00a0Australia\u2013Asia PowerLink<\/a>\u00a0(AAPL) consists of a 12,000-hectare solar farm generating 17\u201320 gigawatts, an 800-kilometre, high-voltage direct-current overhead cable from the farm to Darwin, a 30-gigawatt battery and storage load-balancing facility in Darwin, and a 4,200-kilometre subsea cable to Singapore.<\/p>\n

The federal and Northern Territory governments have designated the proposal as a \u2018major project<\/a>\u2019 and Mike Cannon-Brookes\u2019 Grok Ventures and Andrew \u2018Twiggy\u2019 Forrest\u2019s Squadron Energy have both invested significant capital<\/a>. This backing from the public and private sectors is a critical sign of confidence in the project\u2014but it faces significant regional competition<\/a>. William Stroll, a Singapore-based lawyer specialising in energy, told the ABC that Sun Cable\u2019s vision was \u2018commendable\u2019 but likely to be prohibitively expensive.<\/p>\n

Australians accept that it\u2019s time to turn to large-scale renewable energy. While we\u2019ve been lagging the rest of the world on the progression of our public discourse, we\u2019re in front in terms of northern Australia\u2019s comparative advantage in producing clean energy. The NT\u2019s Barkly region is positively sun-soaked; far enough south to escape most of the north\u2019s tropical wet-season deluges, but far enough north to easily provide zero-emissions power transmission to Darwin.<\/p>\n

The project would be good for the north\u00a0economically<\/a> with spin-off industries and the potential to establish Darwin as a clean manufacturing and energy hub. It will provide 1,500 jobs during construction and 350 ongoing. As a source of affordable and reliable power, it\u2019s expected to reduce Darwin\u2019s energy prices by 12% and help leverage northern Australia\u2019s natural advantages to boost regional development.<\/p>\n

It would also be good for the country and the globe in environmental terms, with an estimated abatement of 2.5 million tonnes of CO2<\/sub>-equivalent per year in Australia and a further 6 million overseas. It demonstrates that economic growth does not need to result in carbon pollution and that such activity can in fact reduce pollution.<\/p>\n

Because the exact route of the subsea cable is yet to be decided, the environmental risks of laying it haven\u2019t been formally assessed.<\/p>\n

Most broadly, the project would be good for Australia as a regional power and for our neighbours. With energy demand in our region\u00a0rising<\/a>, the AAPL will establish an Australian renewable energy export industry. The AAPL will supply Singapore with up to 15\u201320% of its energy needs. Singapore sets that limit to diversify its energy sources, and the target is not limited by any capacity constraint on the Australian end. There\u2019s also a robust Indonesian investment link and\u00a0global<\/a>\u00a0exposure. Many of our neighbours have emissions reduction targets more ambitious than Australia\u2019s, which will make them reliable consumers of renewable energy, especially as their economies develop and incomes grow, and there\u2019s scope to expand and replicate the AAPL to meet surging demand.<\/p>\n

With Sun Cable a new company established for the initial purpose of delivering the world\u2019s biggest solar farm and intercontinental energy transmission infrastructure network, Infrastructure Australia has assessed the AAPL as a high-risk proposal. The AAPL\u2019s success depends on confidently anticipated but not yet concretely realised factors. When they come off, projects like this are highly rewarded, and faith in bold and visionary projects is needed to catalyse the restructuring of Australia\u2019s energy sector and economy.<\/p>\n

Australians expect their government and bureaucracy to spend money carefully and many policy mechanisms, like grant programs, have very low risk thresholds. While there\u2019s pressure to pick winners consistently, a risk-averse mindset sees many of Australia\u2019s greatest ideas left unfunded or sent offshore. Great innovation requires engagement with and acceptance of risk. And, at times, failure. After all, the lesson from the world\u2019s most innovative companies, from Apple to Amazon, is that success comes from failure, not despite it.<\/p>\n

The AAPL is an example of what Australia is doing right. Backing our innovators and entrepreneurs, using our natural advantages, investing in our regions, taking charge of our energy transition, and facilitating more robust partnerships with our neighbours; these are all the best parts of what Australia has to offer.<\/p>\n

Construction is expected to begin in 2024, and the project is intended to be fully operational in 2029. Last week, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency announced a\u00a0grant<\/a>\u00a0of $45 million over eight years to the Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics to develop cheaper, more efficient solar panels.<\/p>\n

If Australia is to continue to be the lucky country in the 21st century, then it must engage with risk. It must dare to embrace new ways of thinking. And when it stumbles, it must learn from the setbacks, not shy away from them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Halfway between Alice Springs and Darwin is a 10,000-square-kilometre property formerly used by the Packer family as a cattle station. 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