SA blackout report clears renewables, shows need for modern grid and new rules
The Prime Minister owes the country an apology after the Australian Energy Market Operator’s final report into the September 28 South Australian blackout showed that the fault didn't lie with renewable energy, but that the blackout came after transmission towers were blown over and incorrectly configured software was triggered, say the Australian Greens.
In response to the report, the Greens have called on the Turnbull government to fix the energy market rules to level the playing field and encourage greater battery and energy storage capacity into the market, better allowing the grid to deliver short bursts of stabilising power when it is needed.
“The Prime Minister owes the country an apology. It is now clear that the SA blackout wasn't caused by renewables but by the energy grid operator failing to ensure protective software on wind farms was correctly set up,” the Greens’ energy and climate change spokesperson, Adam Bandt MP said.
“The report confirms that had the software been correctly set up, the wind turbines would have kept spinning and the lights would have stayed on.
“If we get more batteries and storage into the system, for example by fixing the energy market’s 30-minute settlement rule and making it a 5-minute rule, we'd drive down electricity costs and improve grid stability.”
“The Prime Minister’s misleading fear-mongering is a futile attempt to hide the fact he has no coherent national energy policy and no plan to transition our energy system into the 21st century.”
South Australian Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young called on the Turnbull government to end the blame game and get on with modernising the grid to protect against failures in the future.
“South Australians are sick and tired of being taken for mugs,” Senator Hanson-Young said.
“For too long our state has been little more than an afterthought for this East-Coast Prime Minister who has continually shown blatant disregard for South Australia’s energy security.
“It’s time he fixed the rules to encourage investment and let us get on with delivering stable, clean, green energy along with the jobs that come with that.”
Media Contact
Adam Bandt: Gideon Reisner 0429 109 054
Sarah Hanson-Young: Noah Schultz-Byard 0427 064 760
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