Farmers for Climate Action CEO Natalie Collard has welcomed the new two-yearly energy grid roadmap from the independent energy grid operator, Australian Energy Market Operator.
Farmers for Climate Action has 8200 farmer members across the nation.
CEO Natalie Collard said the document confirmed Australia’s energy shift is on track and that we need to stay the course.
“The market operator’s Plan confirms we’re already getting 40% of our electricity from renewables,” Ms Collard said.
“The Plan confirms our energy shift is broadly on track and we need to stay the course. More grid-scale storage is entering the grid in the next few years, which is an important part of a cleaner grid maturing.
“Many farmers are making serious money from the energy shift. Solar companies are now paying farmers a whopping $1500 per hectare per year rent and wind companies are paying around $49,000 per turbine per year. Farmers run sheep under the solar panels, and both sheep and cattle around wind turbines.
“We can’t afford to miss this opportunity for farmers to have the choice to diversify into drought-proof income and make their farms more productive. This means real community engagement, real community benefits, and real action to look after nature must be on the agenda for all energy and transmission developers. Community consent is something you ask for, not something that is automatically granted after a short process.
“The Plan also confirms the fastest way to put downward pressure on energy prices is to get more renewables into the energy grid, because renewables with storage are so much cheaper than alternatives. Renewables and batteries are also much faster to build than alternate sources of energy.
“Aging coal fired power stations are becoming less reliable and more expensive. A dozen have closed since 2011 with 90% of the remainder set to close by 2035.
“As AEMO says: ‘The ISP confirms that renewable energy connected with transmission and distribution, firmed with storage, and backed up by gas-powered generation is the lowest-cost way to supply electricity to homes and businesses.'”
