A new report released today by the Australian-German Climate and Energy College debunks the myth of a gas shortage in Australia and reveals that renewable energy and storage is cheaper than gas.
This research finds that although a although a “gas-price crisis” exists in eastern-Australia, a gas-supply shortfall is very unlikely to occur. It also finds that the former gas “buyer’s market” that prevailed in eastern-Australia has shifted to become a “seller’s market”.
Download the full report here.
The report, titled ‘A Short-lived Gas Shortfall’, which was commissioned by Lock the Gate and The Wilderness Society, finds that:
- The 2018 shortfall predicted in gas supply by the Australian Energy Market Operator on 9th March 2017 to much fanfare effectively ‘vanished’ just 11 days later due to an updated forecast.
- Increased gas prices are NOT a result of a shortage but due to gas companies exporting much of their gas
- Wind and solar PV are cheaper forms of bulk energy than combined cycle gas turbines, and in some cases, the cost even of new-build renewable energy and storage is cheaper than generating electricity at existing gas power stations.
- Storage technologies are competitive with open cycle gas turbines in providing flexible capacity.