{"id":27548,"date":"2019-02-14T13:42:25","date_gmt":"2019-02-14T03:12:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=27548"},"modified":"2025-01-02T07:47:13","modified_gmt":"2025-01-01T22:17:13","slug":"coal-killed-by-renewables","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/coal-killed-by-renewables\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian Coal Power Will Be Quickly Killed By Low Cost Renewables"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Coal

Low Cost Renewables Will Soon Drive Coal Power Out Of The Market<\/p><\/div>\r\n

Last month the entire country sweltered under an oppressive heatwave — except the half known as Western Australia.\u00a0 As air conditioner power consumption soared on the 25th, 40% of Victoria’s coal generators failed<\/a>\u00a0followed by\u00a0rolling blackouts.\u00a0When faced with this incontrovertible evidence of coal’s unreliability, the government dedicated itself to the rapid phaseout of coal under its “affordable, reliable 24\/7 power” program.<\/p>\r\n

Sorry, only kidding.\u00a0 What they actually did was offer to pay the debts of new coal power stations that go bust<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

While the Coalition is content to fiddle while the world burns, the good news is the days of coal generation are numbered.\u00a0 Despite what many politicians seem to believe1<\/a><\/sup>, the work of countless dedicated people around the world shows the cost of new renewable energy generation is less than the cost of new coal generation.\u00a0 This includes enough storage or dispatchable2<\/a><\/sup> generation to meet demand more reliably than coal. \u00a0When an old coal power station is shut down it won’t be replaced with new coal generation simply because the alternatives are cheaper.<\/p>\r\n

This is wonderful because it means most of the world’s remaining coal deposits will be left in the ground. But existing coal power stations will live on, spewing greenhouse gases and damaging health, for as long as it’s profitable.\u00a0 To drive them out of business, electricity from new renewables will have to be cheaper than electricity from old coal. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Thankfully this has already happened. \u00a0Rooftop solar<\/a>, by directly reducing consumers’ reliance on grid electricity, out-competes coal power.\u00a0 It was a contributing factor in Alinta Energy making the business decision to shut down South Australia’s last coal-guzzler, the\u00a0Northern Power Station<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

To rapidly push the nation’s remaining coal stations out of the market, large scale solar and wind farms must produce electricity at a lower cost than coal. \u00a0When this might happen? Well, according to my estimates large scale renewables are on the cusp of being cheaper than black coal generators right now.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

This won’t make Australia’s coal generators disappear overnight. It will take time to build the required renewable capacity and ensure there’s enough available dispatchable power to meet demand.\u00a0 But it does look like coal power will be driven out of Australia far sooner than most expect. \u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Coal Is A Free Rider<\/h2>\r\n

The only reason new renewables aren’t already cheaper than coal power is because coal free rides by not paying for its health or environmental costs.\u00a0 I hope that soon, Australia’s leaders — or some new leaders who aren’t quite as thick — will make coal pay for at least some of the harm it causes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

New Coal Power Is Not Competitive<\/h2>\r\n

Coal power stations are expensive to build.\u00a0 They are huge piles of steel and concrete.\u00a0 And not just random piles but very carefully arranged piles.\u00a0 Sure, there’s more room for error than when building nuclear piles, but they’re still not something that can be slapped together by amateurs.\u00a0 Only the decision on whether they should pay for the harm they cause is left up to amateurs.<\/p>\r\n

Australia’s last coal power station came online 11 years ago. \u00a0Since then the cost of building new coal power stations has only increased.\u00a0 Part of this is because expertise in building modern supercritical3<\/a><\/sup> coal plants comes from overseas, with China having the most skill in this area.\u00a0 But mostly it’s because financiers no longer see coal power as a reliable investment.\u00a0 Instead they see it as a venture with a high risk of forced closure before it’s even paid off thanks to:<\/p>\r\n