Facts back HELE case

THERE has been a flurry of opinion articles by journalists, commentators and politicians about renewable energy being the way of the future, and that the proposal to develop an ultramodern HELE coal- fired baseload power station in North Queensland is a cause for dismay.

I strongly disagree with this opinion and my disagreement is based on factual analysis, not just an opinion.

Harvard professor and fourterm US senator Daniel Moynihan wisely said: “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.”

How often do you hear the commonly stated opinion that solar PV is lower cost than a new ultra- modern HELE base- load power station?

The Palaszczuk Government’s own Expert Panel Report confirms that the capital cost per megawatt- hour ( mWh) of solar generation is $ 757. An ultra- modern HELE baseload power station, operating 24/ 7, 365 days a year, will produce power at a cost of $ 251 per mWh.

Renewables such as solar do have a “zero- generation cost”. You do not pay for the sun. To claim that this zero- generation cost makes solar cheaper, you have to ignore not only the facts but substantial other add- on costs. Solar and wind require both back- up generation and storage that will cost thousands of billions.

Ms Palaszczuk’s expert panel forecasts that in 2030 renewables will have to generate 30 million mWh to achieve the 50 per cent target. With solar, all this generation must happen during daylight hours ( annual average eight hours per day). If you conservatively costed for only a third, 10 million mWh, of this generation to be stored in large- scale batteries, the storage capital cost is $ 387,597 per mWh. This storage cost is obviously economically unviable.

My costing calculations are based on the South Australia Tesla storage battery, which stores only 129 mWh when fully charged. The battery costs $ 64 million. I conservatively discounted the cost to $ 50 million for my calculation.

It is worth noting that the Government’s Renewable Energy Expert Panel provides no costings on large- scale battery storage.

Five ultra- modern HELE power stations with a generating capacity of 5500mW would generate 48.2 million mWh annually at a total capital cost of $ 12.1 billion. Each mWh would cost only $ 251, not the $ 757 for solar. And there is no need for costly back- up generation or battery storage. If your argument focuses on emissions reduction, ultra- modern HELE power stations can reduce emissions by over 40 per cent. A NQ HELE station would reduce emissions by much more when transmission losses are taken into account. The Renewable Energy Expert Panel Report states that in 2030, achieving the 50 per cent Renewable Energy Target will reduce emissions from electricity generation by 20 per cent ( Page 12, Section 1.4 “Summary of Key Projected Outcomes”)

Opinion writers claim renewables are cheaper, cleaner and will provide affordable and reliable power. The facts say otherwise. Do not be dismayed. Heed the facts, ignore erroneous opinions, and build ultramodern HELE power stations. BARRY LOWE,

Kirwan.