A major study released by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) says Australia has the potential to meet all its energy needs from renewable energy sources, and it could do it on the cheap.
The WWF study, “The Energy Report: 100% Renewable Energy By 2050”, was prepared in collaboration with respected energy and climate consultancy firm Ecofys. It sets out a global plan for zero carbon emissions by 2050 through utilisation of existing renewable energy technologies.
“If we continue to rely on fossil fuels, we face a future of increasing anxieties over energy costs, energy security and climate change impacts,” WWF Director General Jim Leape said. “We are offering an alternative scenario - far more promising and entirely achievable.”
The report calls for large amounts of total available roof space to be converted to solar PV systems and domestic solar hot water systems. Among other major facilities required, 110 large-scale solar farms would be built, each with a capacity of 500 megawatts (MW).
According to the report, by applying energy efficiency measures to commerce, industry and civil energy demand across society, Australia would use 24 percent less energy in 2050 than it would under a business-as-usual model. These savings would result in a decrease of 450 terawatt hours (TWh) per year in carbon-intensive energy usage.
The report examines the six major renewable energy resources that would be needed to supplement fossil-fuels into the future: wind power, solar, bio-energy, geothermal, hydro-electricity and ocean-energy. Under the WWF modelling, carbon capture and storage (CCS) would make up around five percent of the energy mix.
Should Australia adopt the renewable energy measures outlined in the study, the WWF report says, the nation “would occupy a highly competitive position as a supplier of large volumes of low cost, low carbon energy-to-energy intensive industry.”
