Alex St John
@sci_pol_muggins
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Policy & Research @EECouncil. 'Skews wonky' in energy, science, research, climate and other areas. Makes edits to things. Lapsed chemist. Opinions are my own.
Canberra, Australia
Joined January 2010
@GuardianAus reports new QLD Premier saying they’ll legislate a 75% emissions reduction target for 2035! That is big. Base year unclear to me - if 2005, as current usual practice, it is super big for QLD. Tough to do! But WA&QLD are the tricky bits for a national target, so…
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It's time for one my six-monthly tweets - and this is a process question. For those considering leaving this platform, where are we all going? I'm most interested in where sensible policy peeps are headed...
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PS/9: Also totally forgot to point out that many @RBAInfo docs are accompanied by a 'Non-Technical Summary' - which is a great addition to any #policy publication.
rba.gov.au
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The AEMC will now apply an emissions reduction objective to its rule-making and review processes with the South Australian Parliament passing legislation to add emissions reduction to the national energy objectives. More: https://t.co/Cru0LCaDeU
aemc.gov.au
The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) will now apply an emissions reduction objective to its rule-making and review processes with the South Australian Parliament passing legislation to add...
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9/9: So what does this all mean? If Australia is to be a prosperous, net zero-compatible economy, we need to start figuring out how to encourage investment - and investment that encourages innovation.. otherwise it's v. unlikely we'll find the solutions to the harder-to-abate.
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8/n: Sidenote: Achieving net zero will require massive - MASSIVE - research, development and innovation. An economy that is becoming less dynamic, and shifting investment away from productive things does not foster this innovation. Also, here's the extent of the investment prob:
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7/n: then these things are also a big barrier to getting investment in net zero.
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6/n: I don't actually know the total price tag of investment that's required to transform the economy to a zero-emissions one, but I understand it's a lot. Probably hundreds of billions of dollars. So if the RBA is right, and incumbency and market power is muting investment...
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5/n: As an energy and climate policy wonk, why do I think this is concerning? Because if Australia is to achieve its emissions reduction targets, there is a lot of investment that needs to happen in replacing high-emissions infrastructure and activity with low/no emissions equivs
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4/n: And 3: 1&2 are linked. This is super important. It means that we are not really investing, and when we are, it's not in productive ways. Putting aside general arguments about the utility of economic growth and GDP as useful indicators of national wellbeing, this isn't good.
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3/n: 2: Capital allocation is shifting away from more-productive firms towards less-productive firms. There are a range of reasons for this, including but my general reaction here is ... wut? Capital markets be crazy!
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2/n 1: Capital investment is declining amongst the non-mining sector, and has been doing so for over a decade. This is important and concerning, and I've harped on this before. But it has ramifications beyond economics that I'll touch on later.
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1/n I'm a big fan of @RBAInfo research. Australia-specific economic analysis useful to a range of policy areas. Their March paper on productivity - Doing Less with Less ( https://t.co/6VQOONsOdQ) - raises a couple of concerns, that have impacts beyond pure economic wonkery:
rba.gov.au
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Energy demand and energy supply - nominally in balance, but is the balance right? If you missed our webinar this week but want to get involved in our work to help reduce energy bills & emissions through better demand-side policy, head to https://t.co/EmfVP1bQFT.
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Looking forward to chatting industrial electrification, under the stewardship of panelmeister @MelbourneRach !
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"Touted as a key part of the clean energy transition as far back as the Finkel report in 2017, demand response has struggled to grow amid fragmentation..." @OBenPotter I see your Finkel 2017 and raise you Parer 2002. Been struggling for over 2 decades! https://t.co/MtWyW6YpRC
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Being able to see your breath indoors. Desperately using your gas stove to heat. Warming your hands over the toaster. It shouldn't be like this - everyone should have a comfortable, healthy home.
Winter is coming / here! Maybe you can relate to these - especially if you're a renter in an un-insulated glorified tent this year 👇 My comic in @GuardianAus today #landlords #winter
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South eastern mainland states: Winter is coming! It’s getting slightly chillier! TURN THE HEATER UP TO INFERNO MODE! Tasmania: Pfft. Settle down, snowflakes. WA: Wut? (img via CEFC)
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Big #budget for #energyefficiency tonight. EE is the quickest and cheapest way to lower emissions short term, amplifying renewables and electrification. Big props to the govt for prioritising social housing energy performance upgrades - the #transition can't leave anyone behind.
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