EcoGeneration — July/August 2010
While natural gas and renewable energy sources are competitors in a changing energy generation market, a number of gas industry heavyweights have suggested that natural gas is also the perfect conventional energy candidate for supporting the development of renewable energy generation. EcoGeneration reviews the debate and the examines future for gas and renewable power partnerships.
A report from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) has found that Australia’s electricity generation mix will undergo a shift to lower-emission fuels, which is expected to result in “a significant reduction in coal’s share and increases in gas and renewable energy”.
“Gas has the potential to play a major role as a ‘transitional’ fuel until lower emission technologies become more cost effective,” ABARE Deputy Executive Director Paul Morris said.
This year ABARE and Geoscience Australia also compiled the Australian Energy Resources Assessment report which examines Australia’s identified and potential energy resources.
Commenting on the report, Federal Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson said “The two big findings are the extraordinary potential of coal seam gas and unconventional gas resources, and for the first time, we can see just how extensive Australia’s renewable energy resources are.”
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