The federal Coalition’s deeply rooted anti-renewables ideology and obsession with fossil fuels has led to “the biggest political mess of our time,” the head of the Smart Energy Council, John Grimes says.
In a speech to the National Press Club on Wednesday, just weeks out from the opening of Australia’s 48th Parliament, Grimes says Australia is currently punching above its weight in the global transition to renewables.
He says this is thanks to the leadership of the Albanese Labor government and a federal energy minister, Chris Bowen, who is “arguably the most effective advocate for his portfolio in cabinet.”
But Grimes also warns that ongoing, urgent action and reform is needed for Australia to hit its clean energy targets, reach its economic potential and meet its global climate commitments.
And he calls on the federal Coalition to “accept the science, the economics and the engineering” driving the shift to renewables.
“The Coalition has been coming after our industry since 2013,” says Grimes. “I’ve been chief executive of the Smart Energy Council for 17 years and it has been shocking to watch.
“Being anti-renewables is the defining ideological test of allegiance for the Coalition.
“Go all-in on an economic and engineering lie – a lie that sits at the heart of the not-so-secret Coalition agreement between the Liberal and National Parties: That renewables can’t compete. They are too weak. To unreliable.
“That adherence, that belief, gets you in and keeps you in. Break ranks? You’re done for.”
The Smart Energy Council (SEC) is one of Australia’s leading and longest-running renewables industry lobby groups and has most recently advocated for and helped to design federal Labor’s game-changing Cheaper Home Batteries incentive.
Grimes recently attended the latest annual SNEC exhibition and conference in Shanghai, where he says he was reminded of the huge role Australian research pioneers played in the development of modern solar technology.
“I again saw firsthand how Professor Martin Green and the team at the UNSW are venerated,” Grimes says. “And how about that cohort of young Chinese solar pioneers completing PHD’s in Sydney in the1980s.
But, “just as there is a through line – a direct link from young Chinese researchers in Sydney to a multi trillion dollar industry – there is also a through line from big fossil fuel interests to the biggest political mess of our time,” he adds.
“The alternate government [this past election] proposing seven nuclear reactor sites, without costings. …It was always a two-pronged attack.
“To attack renewables on one side, back nuclear on the other, keep coal and gas going for as long as possible. And it united Australians like never before.
“Self-funded retirees, young families; people across every demographic and geography. Forget ideology – Australians love solar.
“I have no idea why coalition would attack Australia’s fastest growing industry,” Grimes says. “50,000 workers, powering every sector of the economy, backed by 10 million Australians with solar.
“The question of the day is this? Where is the Coalition going to land on energy policy now?
“The best outcome for Australia, and for our industry is clear: A Coalition that accepts the science, the economics, and the engineering; that backs the national interest; that joins us in building a clean, affordable energy future.
“And if they do, they can count on our support,” the SEC chief says.
“We’ll stand with anyone who has the best interests of our industry, and the planet, at heart. Like we stood with Premier Berejiklian and Matt Kean in NSW. The Liberal Marshall Government in South Australia.
“And we took on and opposed the Labor government in Victoria over their failed solar rebate scheme, then helped them fix it.”
