Australia’s renewables shell game exposed

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The Australian Energy Market Operator’s (AEMO) Integrated System Plan (ISP) is a roadmap for transitioning Australia’s energy system to net zero emissions by 2050. It outlines the necessary investments in generation, storage, and transmission to meet consumer needs and government renewable energy and emissions targets.

AEMO’s ISP was built on the fantastical assumption that Australian households would collectively invest tens of billions of dollars into solar panels and home batteries and then happily cede control of their stored electricity to energy companies.

As illustrated below, the ISP assumed that CER (consumer energy resources)—i.e., household batteries—would account for 65% of all storage. The capital costs of this storage were not accounted for by the ISP because they would be borne by households.

AEMO ISP
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About the author
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.