A farmer can plant a woodlot to grow and will eventually be harvested for firewood. When it is ready to harvest, the farmer can employ a company to harvest the woodlot for him on the basis of:
A. The company would harvest 20% of the woodlot. On instructions, to fall the trees, cutting them up and stack at the farmer’s back door ready for him to use. The farmer would only pay the company the cost involved in the felling, cutting and stacking, plus an overheads margin for the 20% of the woodlot. He would be able to use the firewood for a very low cost.
B. For the other 80% of the woodlot, the company would be free, to fall the trees, cut them up, pack the wood up and sell it to the public at the market price. All the farmer, would require is for the company to pay him a royalty of say 10% per tonne of the retail price. I.e. If the fire wood sold for $150 per tonne. The farmer would get a royalty/payment of $15 per tonne.
LIKE THE FARMER, AUSTRALIA MUST RESERVE COAL, GAS, OIL AND URANIUM FOR ITS OWN USE. And it has in the past.
1. Until 1976, Australia had access to its own oil for only the price of $3 a barrel the production cost. In 1976 John Howard when Treasurer, introduced World Oil Parity Pricing allowing Oil Companies to artificially jack up prices to match the World price, milking $billions from the people even though Australian production costs remained at $3 a barrel. Oil Co’s were given permission to charge overseas prices for all the oil found in Australia, and make massive profits under the guise that it encouraged them to search for oil here. Howard’s argument for its introduction was oil companies needed greater financial incentive to search for oil”. What was kept hidden from the people was that about 70 % of all oil exploration expenditures were reclaimed under ‘Oil Search Subsidies’ in direct refunds of taxpayer’s money and more in taxation breaks. So basically it would have cost them little to search for oil. https://www.aph.gov.au/~/media/wopapub/senate/committee/fuelenergy_ctte/submissions/sub0015_pdf.ashx
FOR ALL FUTURE OIL FIELD FINDS AT LEAST 20% SHOULD BE RESERVED FOR AUSTRALIA’S USE ON A COST PLUS BASIS.
2. Until the 1990’s electricity production was in the majority provided by Government owned coal fired power stations, the Government’s also owned the coal mines feeding the power stations. This meant that electricity prices were able to be kept low on a cost of production basis. (In Victoria this remains the case with the brown coal fired power stations, producing very low cost electricity. However because of ‘clean, green ‘ politics, Victoria’s power is much higher than it need be). Then, in the 1990’s with State Government’s bad management racking up massive debts, State treasurers, were forced to look at selling State assets to reduce the debts. They were seduced by the idea of selling the coal fired power stations and coal mines to the private sector, they could pay off the debt and the private owners in the goodness of their heart, would produce reliable supplies of low cost electricity.
BIG MISTAKE. The private owners instead attempted to get the maximum profits from their power stations, while the move to subsidised Green Energy. Resulted in the coal fired power stations being demonised as producing too much CO2 and being designated to be closed down. This has led to the coal fired power stations, whilst being poorly maintained, still producing between 60% and 80% of the Grids, supplied electricity.
There should be a 20% reservation policy for Australian use (on a costs plus basis) of all the coal produced in new Australian coal mines. With a exchange arrangement, so that coal fired power stations have access to low cost coal.
3. Nuclear power as an energy source has been banned in Australia since the late 1990s, when Prime Minister John Howard's Coalition government passed two laws prohibiting it. First came an amendment to the National Radiation and Nuclear Safety Act (1998) which banned the development of any new nuclear power sites in Australia. The following year, the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999) introduced new rules prohibiting the construction or operation of any facilities that generated nuclear power, fabricated nuclear fuel, enriched uranium or processed nuclear waste.
So from the late 1990’s until now Australia has been locked out of even testing and experimenting with the possibility of using Nuclear Energy for power. Which has left us, very much behind in this area. The Labor Party, Teals and the Greens continuing to demonize Nuclear Energy, should be a black mark on their reputations. These bans on the use of Nuclear power need to be lifted as soon as possible. I commend the work of Will Shackel at Nuclear for Australia in educating Australian’s on the benefits for Australia and working to get the ban lifted. https://www.nuclearforaustralia.com/
The above potential opportunities, underline why our petition: TO STOP THE CLOSURE OF ALL THE AUSTRALIAN COAL FIRED POWER STATIONS AND TO KEEP THEM RUNNING IS OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE.
This includes Eraring NOW 2029, Yallourn NOW 2032), Bayswater in 2033, with Loyang A in 2045 and all other coal fired power stations.
And no consideration of them being closed be considered until assured supplies of base load electricity 24/7 is available from coal, gas or uranium powered generators. Even if this requires the coal fired generators be compulsory acquired by the relevant Government, in the National interest and to maintain the supply of base load electricity 24/7 that is essential to STOP the Grid from collapsing.
OUR PETITION TO KEEP OUR COAL FIRED POWER STATIONS RUNNING. Is educating everyone of how important coal fired power stations are to keeping the Grid from crashing.
https://www.change.org/p/blackouts-will-be-devastating-they-must-be-avoided-at-all-costs
YOUR SUPPORT FOR OUR PETITION WITH DONATIONS WILL BE REPAID WITH BASELOAD ELECTRICITY FOR THE NEXT CRITICAL FIFTEEN TO TWENTY YEARS. Be it $10, $20, $50 or $100 please make a donation and keep our petition in the public eye. AND KEEP THE BLACKOUTS AT BAY. The more signatures we get the more wins will keep coming and the coal fired power stations will be kept running. Promote the petition on Change.org and share it on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Whatsapp or Email.
KEEP INFORMED BY DAILY MONITORING THE AEMO DATA DASHBOARD. And alert your friends to watch the AEMO dashboard, the more know what's happening the better.
Particularly at 7pm and 7am (Or a time that suits you?) watch (and record) the mix of coal, gas hydro, batteries, solar and wind generation and the prices per MWh for each State on the AEMO dashboard.
Example: Eastern States 28/3/26 8.10pm AESDST.. Batteries 8%, Biomass 0%, Black Coal 46% Brown Coal 19%, Gas 3%, Hydro 10% Diesel 0% Solar 0%, Wind 11%. 8.10pm a time when solar is well into its average 17 hour, sunshine drought and wind might join it (as it is doing in NSW and QLD, only on 1% wind), in having a wind drought.
Meanwhile our coal fired generators are the backbone of the Grid. 28/3/26 8.10pm AESDST. In NSW coal is producing 78% Solar 0%, Wind 4%, Qld coal 73%, solar 0% wind 4% Vic Brown coal 69%, solar 0%, wind 27%. SA batteries 33%, gas 44%, solar 0%, wind 23% and Tas hydro 88%, wind 12%.
WITHOUT COAL AUSTRALIA WOULD BE BLACKED OUT.
AND AT THE SAME TIME SOME GENERATROS ARE BEING RUN AT A LOSS. As shown by these statistics what the generators are receiving for their Grid electricity. 28/3/26 8.10pm AESDST. In Qld the generators are only receiving $0.70MWh. NSW is being paid $37.89Mwh. SA is paying minus $4.00MWh (the generator is paying the Grid to take the power) Vic is paying minus $4.75MWh (the generator is paying the Grid to take the power) and Tas is paying $72.24MWh.
WHO WOULD WANT TO RUN AN ELECTRICITY GENERATOR AT A LOSS!
STOP PRESS: WHAT CAN HAPPEN. South Australia 4th June 2024 9.05pm EST. Batteries 0%, Gas 97%, Diesel 3% Solar 0%, Wind 0%.
SA RENEWABLES CAPITAL OF AUSTRALIA WITH BATTERIES, SOLAR AND WIND PRODUCING NO ELECTRICITY, ZERO, NOTHING
In the current fuel crisis our petition is getting traction, we are up to 4,622 signatures, let’s increase it by many more, everyone’s future depends on it. Continue to spread the word, to all family, friends, anyone you meet, particularly discuss it with shop and business owners. Ask the question, “How do you plan to cope when the blackouts come? The possibility is too awful to contemplate.
WE MUST KEEP THOSE COAL FIRED GENERATORS GOING, TO KEEP OUR SOCIETY FROM HAVING BLACKOUTS, POWER RATIONING AND EXHORBITENT ENERGY PRICES.