Australia plays safe
The Australian government has opted for reliability over renewables in the power sector
In the wake of the "System Black" power failure that knocked out South Australia for up to two days in late 2016, the country's government has dumped the existing clean energy-based policy in favour of a radically different one. This relies more on oil and gas in the interests of grid stability. Known as the National Energy Guarantee (NEG), the new policy will set power suppliers explicit percentages of their energy mix that must be supplied from dispatchable sources such as coal, gas, oil, hydropower and batteries. Previous policy encouraged higher percentages from intermittent renewables such as solar and wind. Although not abandoning emissions goals, the new strategy designed by the Energ
Also in this section
9 January 2026
A shift in perspective is needed on the carbon challenge, the success of which will determine the speed and extent of emissions cuts and how industries adapt to the new environment
2 January 2026
This year may be a defining one for carbon capture, utilisation and storage in the US, despite the institutional uncertainty
23 December 2025
Legislative reform in Germany sets the stage for commercial carbon capture and transport at a national level, while the UK has already seen financial close on major CCS clusters
15 December 2025
Net zero is not the problem for the UK’s power system. The real issue is with an outdated market design in desperate need of modernisation
