Institute For Integrated Economic Research-Australia
Australia’s Poor Energy Systems Resilience
The topic of energy has become so politicised in Australia, both between the major parties and within the Liberal / National Coalition Government, that our national interest and security has been subsumed by both party and personal interests.
This report explores the need for an energy strategy and plan for Australia; one that should be coordinated / correlated with strategies for national security and resilience, economy, environment, industry, and research.
Energy Security - Is there a problem?
Published in the Australian Defence Magazine, September 2018.
Unfortunately the topic of energy has become so politicised, both between the major parties and within the Liberal party, that the national interest has been subsumed by both party and personal interests. The reality is that energy security, like national security, can only be addressed with consistent bipartisan political support.
Whilst Australia is endowed with natural resources, energy security risks across several sectors have increased. Despite this, the Government does not seem to think we have a problem. Unfortunately, energy security is about much more than just a more “reliable” and cheaper electricity supply. It is about our security as a nation, it is about protecting our society and our way of life and, as such, it is a very complex issue.
There are are significant issues with our energy systems that should concern us all; unfortunately, the analysis of our energy security and resilience is inadequate and the management of energy security has been outsourced to the market. The idea that we are at peace and “business as usual” is the appropriate model where the markets can manage all aspects of our critical infrastructure and supply chains is clearly out of date.
Energy security is a vital component of national security and an increased level of Government control / leadership with respect to energy security is warranted. The discussion of these issues is not just for our politicians; it is our collective responsibility to discuss these issues and to tell our politicians what we need to have done and not wait to just complain after our energy systems fail. We need a National Security Strategy that integrates all aspects of national power. An energy security plan should be an integral part of such a strategy.
National Hydrogen Strategy Discussion Paper Response
This paper was submitted by the IIER-Australia in response to the invitation to respond to the COAG energy Council National Hydrogen Strategy Discussion Paper in April 2019. It concludes that Hydrogen can contribute to Australia’s national security by providing an alternative energy source that is domestically generated, Australian-owned, economically beneficial, environmentally sound if supported by policy that takes energy security seriously.
Developing the policies to deliver the National Hydrogen Strategy must occur within the framework of national security and be implemented under an integrated system level design.