Carbon Economy

It is the largest Ponzi scheme in history, so unravelling it takes time.

The reverse GFC is going swimmingly: Chinese regulators have sought for years to get to grips with the $2.9 trillion trust industry, a corner of the country’s shadow banking sector that offers bigger returns than regular bank deposits but can be fraught with risk.

Iron ore is hanging on: Remember that Sep/Oct are the seasonally weakest two months on the calendar: The Chinese property crisis is back as the country’s largest developer teeters: Country Garden Holdings Co.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday flagged that he would use the upcoming national cabinet meeting in Brisbane to get the states to commit to planning laws that would make it easier to build one million homes over five years from 2024, as announced in the federal budget.

Talk about taking a punt: A “coal-to-nuclear transition” in the regions and tapping Australia’s world-leading uranium stocks are firming as centre­pieces of the Coalition’s 2025 energy policy to secure long-term baseload power, slash emissions and lower electricity bills.

If you thought China was about to recover on a cyclical turn, here is Societe General on inventories to hose that idea.

The Australian’s Judith Sloan argues that the federal government’s target that carbon emissions be lower by 43% by 2030 relative to 2005 is unrealistic.

I noted over the weekend the shocking state of Chinese property sales volumes: Falling volumes usually presage falling prices and that is now confirmed as well.

I have no issue with nuclear power if it will save the planet.

Australian energy is a filthy, lying carbon pump.

Sinocism with the news.

Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek, told Question Time this week (video below) that no government in Australian history has done more for the environment than the Albanese Labor government.

The question is, how long will it last this time?

Terry McCrann argues that the federal government’s policies of net zero emissions and resuming the immigration Ponzi scheme are utterly incompatible.

JPM with the rich irony.

This makes a lot more sense than Mike Cannon-Brooks cable to nowhere: Andrew Forrest’s Squadron Energy is considering bidding for Sun Cable – the visionary $35 billion clean energy export project in northern Australia – against Mike Cannon-Brookes, but will dump a 5000-kilometre power cable link to Singapore if successful.

I have never understood the Sun Cable business model.

Coalition humiliation is complete: The Albanese government will cap the carbon price at $75 a tonne for miners and other big industrial emitters, in a bid to shield business from the risk of future cost spikes and provide certainty under Labor’s decarbonisation plan.

Another slump in energy prices as warm weather in the northern hemisphere puts a dampener on demand.

Go Socialist Vikings! From DW: Norwegians bought the highest numbers of electric cars ever in 2022, data released on Monday show. Four of out every fifth car registered last year was an electric car, according to data released by the Norwegian Road Federation (OFV).

A new report from The Australia Institute (TAI) shows that Australian coal companies have pocketed tens-of-billions of dollars in war profits in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: Energy prices soared worldwide following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Mizuho with the note: In just a few weeks, China scraped its ‘zero covid’ policy and embraced spiking COVID infections across the country, as the government pledged a return to its pro-growth stance.

The Australia Institute (TAI) has released data showing that Australia’s transport emissions will be above pre-pandemic levels until 2023, which it blames on the uptake of SUVs and utes: The government projects that by 2035 electric vehicles will account for 44% of new car sales compared to less than 1% in 2019.

CSIRO and BoM with the report.

Farewell National Electricity Market.