By ROD McGUIRK (AP) – 20 minutes ago

CANBERRA, Australia — Australia’s Senate passed legislation Thursday to require that 20 percent of the country’s electricity come from renewable sources such as the sun and wind by 2020, matching European standards and up from about 8 percent now.

The bill is certain to be endorsed by the government-dominated House of Representatives later Thursday and become law.

The law would quadruple the renewable energy target set by the previous government in 2001 and provide enough clean electricity to power the households of all 21 million Australians.

The target matches one set in 2007 by the European Union, which leads the world in green power technology.

But some officials warn that more aggressive cuts in carbon gas emissions are needed as well.

The bill was passed after the government reached a deal with the main opposition party to increase government assistance to industries that are heavy users of electricity and create safeguards for existing investment in the coal mining industry.

Sen. Bob Brown, leader of the Australian Greens minor opposition party, said the target should be 30 percent and that big polluters were offered too much government assistance.

Sen. Bob Fielding, an independent, said the bill will make power too expensive.

“It’s mums and dads that will be subsidizing wind-powered electricity, solar — these are very expensive,” he said.

Currently, 8 percent of Australia’s electricity comes from renewable sources, including hydroelectric generators built late last century, according to the private Clean Energy Council.

Critics argue the target will make electricity more expensive in coal-rich Australia without curbing the amount of climate-warming carbon gases that the nation emits, as overall electricity consumption rises.

Climate Change Minister Penny Wong told the Senate on Wednesday that even with one-fifth of Australia’s electricity coming from renewable sources by 2020, the nation’s carbon gas emissions are projected to be 20 percent higher than 2000 levels.

“The only way we’re going to be able to turn around the growth in our carbon pollution … is to put a firm legislated limit on the amount of carbon that we produce and make those who create the pollution pay for it,” Wong said.

Last week the Senate rejected a government-proposed bill that would have taxed industries’ carbon emissions starting in 2011 and slashed the country’s emissions by up to 25 percent below 2000 levels by 2020.

Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hJ0rDI2fay9CB4ngpuR84UrEmyfwD9A6C5U00

BY DANIELLE CRONIN, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT
20/08/2009 6:52:00 AM
The sun, wind and other renewable sources will generate one-fifth of Australians’ electricity by 2020 after the Federal Government and Opposition struck a deal to set this target.

The parties hope the agreement will also serve as a launch pad for fresh negotiations over plans for an emissions trading scheme to tackle climate change.

The Senate will pass legislation to set the renewable energy target that will also increase household power bills by about 80c a week, with the vote scheduled today.

It will also deliver a new rebate worth up to $7750 to install solar panels and see the proliferation of wind farms.

Climate Change Minister Penny Wong hailed the deal.

”The Renewable Energy Target will ensure that 20 per cent of Australia’s electricity comes from renewable sources by 2020,” Senator Wong said.

”In 10 years’ time the amount of electricity coming from sources like solar, wind and geothermal will be around the same as all of Australia’s current household electricity use.”

Opposition spokesman on climate change Greg Hunt said the deal was a ”victory” for common sense, the environment and renewable energy.

The deal included concessions on waste coal seam gas and the treatment of trade-exposed sectors such as aluminium.

Source: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/parties-share-2020-vision-on-energy-target/1601136.aspx

Tom Arup, Environment Correspondent
August 14, 2009

GREEN groups have used the defeat of the emissions trading scheme bill to urge the Government to separate its renewable energy target from the rejected trading legislation.

The Climate Institute’s chief executive, John Connor, said yesterday the Government would have to separate the two pieces of legislation to ensure there was some short-term investment in clean energy jobs with the fate of the emissions trading scheme now in flux.

The renewable energy target – 20 per cent by 2020 – is set to reach the Senate next week for a vote, but is not expected to pass unless the Government removes a part of the bill that links compensation to heavy-emitting industries under the target to the passage of its now-rejected carbon trading scheme.

The Australian Conservation Foundation’s head, Don Henry, urged all senators to support the renewable target next week. Mr Connor and Mr Henry, who both backed Labor’s scheme, criticised the rejection of the emissions trading legislation yesterday by all non-Government senators.

Business groups said the defeat gave the Government and the Opposition a chance to negotiate a deal on emissions trading before the bill returns to the Senate in November.

The Australian Industry Group’s chief executive, Heather Ridout, said a deal between the two parties was in the interest of ”business certainty” and more compensation for industry should be the result.

The Australian Coal Association’s chief executive, Ralph Hillman, said the defeat meant the parties could work on a compromise deal to ”ensure coal is treated equally”.

The Opposition is preparing amendments to the renewable energy target to separate the policies and add extra exemptions for the aluminum and milk pasteurisation industries.

The Opposition spokesman on energy, Ian Macfarlane, said other Coalition amendments will also:

- Include as a renewable energy the process of turning methane from coalmining into electricity.

- Reserve 5 per cent of the 20per cent target for baseload renewable power like geothermal amid fears wind farms will claim it all.

- Address concerns that energy-intensive gas-based solar hot water pumps are part of targets.

Mr Connor said those amendments would not be ”fatal” to the legislation, but said any industry exemptions from the target were unnecessary. He said any move to consider methane-conversion technology as a renewable should be additional to the 20 per cent target.

The Greens will also move amendments to the target legislation, increasing it and removing industry assistance, and introducing a renewable energy feed-in tariff.

The Clean Energy Council’s chief executive, Matthew Warren, said delays to the renewable energy target were costing the industry $2 million a week. The target legislation includes the Government’s ”solar credits” scheme which will replace its household solar rebate policy.

The Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, would not commit to changes to the renewable energy target yesterday, instead saying if the Coalition had a ”policy position” on the emissions trading scheme it could negotiate.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/energy-smart/greens-seek-bill-split-to-save-target-20090813-ejyl.html