Future of the Australian Electricity Market

[ajw]

I would have thought that the power generators had fixed supply contracts with coal mines, so that they were guaranteed supply at a known price. The mines shouldn't be able to simply withhold confirmed/contracted orders just so they can sell to a higher bidder. I know it's likely to be much more complicated than that, but it needs to get sorted out somehow. If retail prices move to 50 cents kWh there will be a lot of people struggling to pay the bills. The flow-on effects through the economy of significantly higher power and gas prices will cause another spike in inflation. The outlook is quite scary for a lot of people, I'd imagine.

ajw

[russ57]

I know amber (my retailer) has insurance to cover their obligations to not exceed the default offer price and i would guess most do. But the premiums will no doubt be heading north at the next renewal.
Perhaps some retailers (and generators) were betting that wasn’t required. (higher profits higher risk).
But surprising never the less.

[GraemeCook]

It is starting to sound like a re-run of the California electricity crisis of 20 years ago.

And for pretty much the same reasons.

[Close a dirty fossil fuel power station and the Greens are very happy, but an energy supply deficiency is created. No alternatives available so market forces push power prices up alarmingly, and the same companies make a killing wth their remaining dirty power stations. If the supply gap starts to narrow, then be very public spirited and close another dirty power station. Public Relations will massage the media!]

[yvan]

Co2 is an issue, Paul: if you have a gas heater and live in, say, Thredbo or Liaweene, then you will probably run said heater for 24 hours per day, and produce a lot of CO2.

An adequately powered wok should complete a stir-fry in less than 60 seconds. Morally, I can live with that amount of CO2.

Graeme,

You may be interested in one of these mushroom burners:

12 Jet Mushroom Burner - LP Gas - Auscrown

I have got one of these and am in the process of building a cart on wheels to use it outdoors. I can't tell how hot it will get as I haven't fired it yet .

Cheers,
Yvan

[GraemeCook]

Graeme,

You may be interested in one of these mushroom burners:

12 Jet Mushroom Burner - LP Gas - Auscrown

...

Thanks, Yvan. The output of your 12 burner unit is given on page 11 of the specifications sheet as 37.5 mJ. This is a lot better than my 25 mJ, but well short of Kai Wings's 100+ mJ.

You really can taste the difference of the more mJ's, and he is thinking of changing to a 200 mJ unit. There are also legal and insurance issues in putting a commercial unit in a domestic kitchen.

[Bushmiller]

You really can taste the difference of the more mJ's, and he is thinking of changing to a 200 mJ unit. There are also legal and insurance issues in putting a commercial unit in a domestic kitchen.

Graeme

I think the commercial stoves may not cut off the gas should the flame go out. While commercial stoves have a lot more "grunt" than domestic stoves, they are normally a no-frills type affair being quite simplistic. On the stove we had the smallest burner was about the same as the largest burner on a domestic stove. Having said that, my experience of commercial stoves dates from around 2000 so some improvements may have made since that time.

Regards
Paul

[woodPixel]

We have to start thinking BIG, really big....

China to double wind, solar energy capacity by 2025

In 2025, the annual power generation from renewable energy will reach about 3.3 trillion kilowatt-hours

TRILLION.....3.3 trillion....

Imagine if we could have used some of that Liberal Debt and built wind and solar farms?

HOOLEY DOOLEY!!!

[NeilS]

Thanks, Yvan. The output of your 12 burner unit is given on page 11 of the specifications sheet as 37.5 mJ. This is a lot better than my 25 mJ, but well short of Kai Wings's 100+ mJ.

You really can taste the difference of the more mJ's, and he is thinking of changing to a 200 mJ unit. There are also legal and insurance issues in putting a commercial unit in a domestic kitchen.

Just this week I removed two AM125 gas burners from one of my kilns... they run at 200,00btu/200MJ a piece when on full bore... I shudder to think what they would do to a stir fry!

My immediate concern with that amount of heat in a domestic kitchen is the exhaust arrangements. Any domestic kitchen exhaust fan and ducting would be fried as quickly as the stir fry...

Hot wok.jpg

The large heavy duty SS canopies used in commercial kitchens with their equally expensive exhaust fan units and external ducting/flue arrangements are better able to cope with that level of heat.

If you do really like the idea of doing some cooking on a flame thrower at home... perhaps outside next to the barby. with the fire extinguisher close at hand...


PS - I'm not sure about commercial kitchen gas burners, but those gas burners of mine (see attached) have an automatic cut off should the flame go out. A kiln full of gas that suddenly ignites is a frightening prospect.

[FenceFurniture]

edit: they have one for $70, which is sort of OK on price but it does come with a hose.... Gasmate Cast Iron Ring Burner - MyDeal

Attachment 512562

These things are ferocious! I've had one for about 15 years, and I use them when I do a soup run for which I need to make about 25 litres or more of Vege Stock. My biggest pot now is a 25 litre jobbie, but ozhunter bought my 77 litre monster a while back.

[GraemeCook]

... You really can taste the difference of the more mJ's, and he is thinking of changing to a 200 mJ unit. There are also legal and insurance issues in putting a commercial unit in a domestic kitchen. ...

Just this week I removed two AM125 gas burners from one of my kilns... they run at 200,00btu/200MJ a piece when on full bore... I shudder to think what they would do to a stir fry!

My immediate concern with that amount of heat in a domestic kitchen is the exhaust arrangements. Any domestic kitchen exhaust fan and ducting would be fried as quickly as the stir fry...

Hot wok.jpg ... .

Precisely; that is why I said there may be legal and insurance issues with a commercial stove or cooktop. But I cannot remember the details so I said nothing else.

Some 20-25 years ago I was at an auction and bought an almost new stainless 6-burner commercial gas stove quite cheaply, and felt very pleased with myself. We did not have a gas connection then, so I rang a gas fitter friend and asked if he could convert the stove to bottled gas and install it for me. He came round, looked at it and shook his head. He mentioned the "blast furnace heat" that it could produce and the need (and legal requirement) for adequate clearances to inflamable things. Basic problems then in my kitchen included:

• Inadequate extractor,
• Wooden floors,
• Wooden window frames,
• Pine cabinet next to stove alcove,
• Pine doors on ther cabinets and drawers,
• Melamine bench tops and cabinet carcases, etc.

I sold the stove quite well.

[woodPixel]

Here is a cool thing.... stretchable fabric that generates electricity!

The PDF --> https://www.ntu.edu.sg/docs/default-...rsn=869781be_1

A short article: New 'fabric' converts motion into electricity | NTU Singapore

As a proof of concept, the team showed that tapping on a 3-centimeter by 4-centimeter piece of the fabric generated enough power for 100 LEDs.

If simply moving and stretching produces energy, some quick thinking invents quite a few opportunities

[Bushmiller]

Are Nukes back on the table?

Peter Dutton hints at controversial shift towards nuclear power (thenewdaily.com.au)

I did take this extract from the article in particular:

"Tony Wood, who heads energy and climate policy at the Grattan Institute, says nuclear energy could make a contribution to Australia’s transition from fossil fuels if public concerns could be overcome and the technology became economically viable."

I don' think these aspects can be stated enough, plus it may be ten years before the first MW is generated: No quick fix here amongst all the other isues.

Regards
Paul

[Chris Parks]

Looking overall at this period in time and our attempts to deal with climate change I think in 50 years time people will look back and wonder where some of the looney ideas came from and why they were seriously considered.

[woodPixel]

Are Nukes back on the table?

Peter Dutton hints at controversial shift towards nuclear power (thenewdaily.com.au)

I did take this extract from the article in particular:

"Tony Wood, who heads energy and climate policy at the Grattan Institute, says nuclear energy could make a contribution to Australia’s transition from fossil fuels if public concerns could be overcome and the technology became economically viable."

Curious they talk about this one week after being SLAIN from government.

Didn't mention it previously.....

Again, the stinking remains of the Liberal party are still throwing dead cats around. They should be solidly ignored for 3 years.

I personally think nuclear is a big part of the answer, but getting everyone else to think this way is a mighty big ask. Ten years will be too late... wind/solar/hydro/sea current/thermal and storage will make it a total economic failure if it ever starts.

[NeilS]

I personally think nuclear is a big part of the answer, but getting everyone else to think this way is a mighty big ask. Ten years will be too late... wind/solar/hydro/sea current/thermal and storage will make it a total economic failure if it ever starts.

Having the largest deposit of uranium in the world up at Olympic Dam we have a big incentive to take advantage of that resource here in SA and we looked at it in detail but the economic arguments for it just don't stack up for electricity generation here in Australia.

The cost of decommissioning a NPP, let alone building it, is staggering. For example "in Slovakia, a detailed case study showed a total cost of €1.14 billion (A$1.7bn) to decommission Bohunice V1 (2 x 440 MWe) and dismantle it by 2025." Source: World Nuclear Association