Wood Mackenzie warns that Australia will not meet its renewable energy target.

Wood Mackenzie, a consultancy, said that Australia will fall well short of its target to generate 82% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030, due to state-level rollbacks and grid connection delays, as well as inadequate investment.

Why it's important

Australia is one of the most polluting countries in the world per capita because it produces coal-powered electricity. It has plans to close all coal-fired power stations by 2038.

The center-left Labor Government, reelected in the first week of this month, said that it would transition to a grid powered by wind and solar with gas, hydropower, and energy storage as backup.

If the renewable energy goal is not met, it will hamper the country's efforts to combat climate change. It could also lead to a shortage of energy.

By the Numbers

Wood Mackenzie's analysis shows that Australia will achieve 58% of renewable energy by the end decade.

Grid-scale energy storage will grow from 2,5 gigawatts up to 16 GW in the same time period. It said that 65 GW are at various stages of development, but they face grid connectivity and project planning obstacles.

The solar capacity for residential, industrial and commercial use will increase to 46 GW. Wood Mackenzie warned that this could "lead to challenges in managing midday solar peak"

KEY QUOTES

Natalie Thompson, Senior Analyst at the Australian Institute of Energy Research (AIE), said: "Despite the Federal Government's ambitious goals, our analysis shows that Australia is currently only on track to reach 58% renewable energy generation by 2030."

The efforts may be complicated by the moves of some state governments such as Queensland and Northern Territory to repeal or reduce their renewable energy targets.

This highlights the urgent requirement for increased investments and greater coordination at all levels of government in order to accelerate the energy transformation.

Wood Mackenzie stated that the government must "overcome obstacles in grid connections and planning processes to ensure a smooth and timely transition". (Reporting from Sydney by Christine Chen; editing by Barbara Lewis.

(source: Reuters)