Approximately 40 people gathered for the WA June technical luncheon at the Melbourne to hear a very informative talk on the history of the energy transition, achievements to date and the outlook for the future, by Dr Peter Moore, industry luminary and a recognised National Geoscience Champion.
Peter gave a global perspective and showed that global energy consumption continues to grow with renewables share increasing, and fossil fuels production also continuing to grow despite declining share. Gas has played a key role in reducing energy poverty in SE Asia. Electrification from renewables, stabilised by gas has been a key theme.
The transition to renewables has been very expensive and the renewables targets appear to be unachievable. The challenges with a speedy transition have been underestimated. Emissions reductions have been achieved, but mainly by sequestration in land (agriculture, forests). The domination by China of the renewables space and the supply challenges of critical minerals for renewable technologies are key issues.
Looking forward, the push to renewables will continue with solar and wind continuing to grow. Political support will be required for renewables. Petroleum will continue to be essential, especially for hard to abate industries and to stabilise renewable renewables generation.
Gas and oil will persist. Deep-water and fracking technologies will be important. For Australia, gas will be required on the east coast for decades, and liquid fuels will be imported, having implications for Australia’s energy security.
Peter’s talk provided an enormous amount of detail, breadth and insight and stimulated much discussion.
