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Australia’s gas plans appear

to be on shaky ground

The government continues to reiterate its commitment to natural
gas within the power sector, but the facts do not seem to add up

COMMENTARY THE Australian government does not appear Doubling down
to have noticed that its plans to bolster gas-fired Appearing in Parliament on August 25, Morri-
power generation (GPG) over the long term have son responded to criticism from Greens leader
WHAT: begun to unravel rather rapidly. Adam Bandt by noting that gas would “firm
Australian Prime Minister Prime Minister Scott Morrison doubled renewable technologies”.
Scott Morrison has down on his administration’s commitment to a “That is why we want to see more of it and
doubled down on a gas- gas-fired recovery this week, calling for greater get more out of the ground … so we can fuel the
fired recovery. domestic production and consumption of the jobs that this country needs to come out of the
hydrocarbon to “fuel the jobs that this country [coronavirus] COVID-19 recession,” he said.
WHY: needs”. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has pro-
Cheaper gas will boost The prospect sounds appealing, especially jected that the country’s GDP will contract by 6%
the manufacturing given the fact that more than 60% of the coun- in 2020, before slowly recovering over the next
sector, creating jobs and try’s coal-fired power generation is expected to couple of years.
boosting the economy. go offline by 2040. But there is a catch: Morri- Morrison then shifted gears to focus on divi-
son’s vision has failed to catch the imagination of sions within the Labor Party, which has been
WHAT NEXT: those beyond his inner circle. split over the National COVID-19 Commission
Keeping a lid on gas The Australian Energy Market Operator’s Advisory Board’s (NCC) recommendations that
prices may be too big a (AEMO) 2020 Integrated System Plan (ISP) gas should be placed front and centre of any eco-
job for the government. has suggested that GPG’s role is not essential to nomic recovery strategy.
the country’s future energy grid, owing to rising Shadow resources minister Joel Fitzgibbon
feedstock costs. has backed the plan, which calls for a number of
Western Australia’s state government, mean- government measures to support upstream and
while, has barred the export of gas production midstream development, only to be chastised by
from future onshore developments to the East Labor leader Anthony Albanese and climate and
Coast. This means that a potential source of energy spokesman Mark Butler.
cheap domestic gas has been sealed away from Morrison dismissed his opposition as “con-
consumers in the east, which could exacerbate fused” about gas, said his government was “all
East Coast gas prices further. behind it” and claimed he would win over the

Week 34 27•August•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P11