Compiled by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Geoscience Australia, the Australian Energy Resource Assessment has good news for the renewable energy industry, with predictions that electricity generation from renewable resources will have risen by 19 per cent by 2030.
The report also studied current renewable energy generation, finding that renewable energy resources make up 7 per cent of total national electricity generation and 5 per cent of primary energy consumption.
Hydro electricity remains the biggest contributor to Australian renewable power, with an installed capacity of 7.8 gigawatts (GW) – contributing 4.5 per cent of Australia’s total electricity production. It accounts for 60 per cent of electricity generation in Tasmania and 20 per cent in New South Wales.
Wind energy is also a major contributor, accounting for 1.5 per cent of electricity generation. Australia has 1.7 GW of installed wind capacity.
According to the report, Australia’s renewable future is boundless, with the majority of potential resources yet to be tapped. The report described the country’s renewable energy generating resources as very large, but mostly underdeveloped.
High solar radiation levels over large areas of the country provide Australia with some of the best solar resources in the world, the assessment said. However, Australia’s current use of solar energy is modest, accounting for only 0.1 per cent of Australia’s electricity generation. This percentage mainly consists of off-grid or residential installations.
The report also highlighted Australia’s significant geothermal energy potential due to the abundance of aquifers deep in sedimentary basins. Ocean energy (wave and tidal) is also a potential new source of energy, particularly along the southwestern and southern coast, where large areas experience constant favourable wave heights of more than 1 metre.
The assessment also pointed out that a number of existing Australian technologies are still at proof-of-concept or early stages of commercial demonstration.
The report acknowledged that a major challenge for the industry will be the expansion of the country’s energy infrastructure in line with the transition to renewable energy, given that Australia’s energy infrastructure is currently concentrated in areas where fossil fuel energy resources are located.
“To bring renewable energy to the consumer, we need to augment electricity transmission with more flexible, decentralised grid capacity,” said Federal Minister for Energy Martin Ferguson.
Mr Ferguson also said that competitive, transparent and efficient energy markets need to be maintained in order to encourage investment in the industry.
The report can be found here.
