Government, governance and the energy trilemma - Australia's experience of the renewable electricity transition

The Australian electricity sector, like many others internationally, contributes the greatest share of the country's greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). It therefore offers the largest opportunity to reduce emissions and limit the impacts of climate change, by making a transition to generating electricity from renewable energy. However, emissions reductions are not the only variable that must be considered in the shift away from fossil fuels and the emergence of the 'energy trilemma' concept has come to represent the three-pronged challenge that confronts us. The trilemma captures the notion that any attempt to transform electricity systems towards renewable energy requires that: first, the solutions are sustainable in that they reduce GHGs; second that they are equitable and affordable; and finally, that system security and reliability are maintained. Though the trilemma concept is useful, its constituent parts are often at odds with each other, and have been used to justify actions that favour one over the others. Following roughly three decades of government policy aimed at reducing emissions in the electricity sector, we need to understand how those policies are shaped, the outcomes from implementing them, and the possible unexpected, perverse spill-over effects that can occur when individual aspects of the trilemma are prioritised over others. Moreover, these policies have transformed the sector into a very different system than it once was. Consequently, we must also understand the trajectory that Australia's electricity system is on, and how we can best govern it across geographic and jurisdictional levels to account for the three imperatives in the 'energy trilemma'. In this thesis, I investigate a number of challenges and complexities encountered in decarbonising Australia's electricity sector and increasing the penetration of renewable sources of electricity generation through the lens of the 'energy trilemma.' Using an interdisciplinary, mixed methods approach I (i) critique the political framing of energy policy (ii) evaluate different policy responses to reduce emissions and improve system security, and (iii) examine how governance arrangements are changing, and the continuing need for change, due to the technological transformation within the sector

TRABAJOS DE MÉTODO ARQUEOLÓGICO [Material gráfico]

Copia digital. Madrid : Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, 201

Promoting behind-the-meter battery storage: optionsfor more effective government support and regulation

We examine the use of subsidies to promote behind-the-meter battery installation, the limitations and perverse outcomes created by these subsidies, particularly as a result of suboptimal spatial concentration. We suggest the use of consumer subsidies to promote behind-the-meter batteries is unlikely to lead to optimal outcomes in aiding the integration of distributed generation sources (solar PV). It is also possible batteries could reduce the reliability of the grid. The problems identified relate to the undirected installations of batteries within the grid due to the reliance on consumers to take part in a subsidy scheme. Recommendations for policy makers and regulators are to encourage optimal installations through directing subsidies, and in lieu of that, to orchestrate and/or coordinate individual installed battery capacity

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Promoting behind-the-meter battery storage: options for more effective government support and regulation

We examine the use of subsidies to promote behind-the-meter battery installation, the limitations and perverse outcomes created by these subsidies, particularly as a result of suboptimal spatial concentration. We suggest the use of consumer subsidies to promote behind-the-meter batteries is unlikely to lead to optimal outcomes in aiding the integration of distributed generation sources (solar PV). It is also possible batteries could reduce the reliability of the grid. The problems identified relate to the undirected installations of batteries within the grid due to the reliance on consumers to take part in a subsidy scheme. Recommendations for policy makers and regulators are to encourage optimal installations through directing subsidies, and in lieu of that, to orchestrate and/or coordinate individual installed battery capacity