ONE of the world’s foremost energy experts visited Port Macquarie last week to talk about the future of energy.
Dr Perry Sioshansi’s talk at the Port Macquarie Library focused on the decline of fossil fuels, the rise of renewables and the promise of decentralised electricity generation.
It was hosted by Climate Change Australia in partnership with Regional Development Australia.
Speaking to the Independent during his visit, Dr Sioshansi said energy and climate change was something every Port Macquarie resident should worry about, not just through concern for the environment but out of self-interest in terms of the cost of power.
“Just because Port Macquarie is a small place doesn’t mean you should ignore these sorts of things,” he said.
“I think you should make a decision collectively on what you can do to address the issues.”
He said there were cities and communities all over the world who had decided to go it alone and make the change for the better, including one region in California in the US who made it mandatory for every new home to have solar panels.
“The upside of that is not only are your power bills slashed, but it is also 20 per cent cheaper to install solar panels when a house is being built rather than to retrofit them,” he said.
“You live in a very sunny region, so there is no reason why you couldn’t do that sort of thing. It makes perfect sense. ”
He said renewable energy would play an increasing part in power generation with good reason because there were no emissions to damage the environment.
The cost of extracting fossil fuels from the ground was also going up, as easily accessible areas were tapped out.
“Fossil fuels start low, but will get more expensive,” the doctor said. “Renewable start off high and get lower and at some stage they crossover and become the same price.
“It is already happening with solar and wind. Wind is already there and solar will be there in 2016. From then on it costs nothing, providing you are not including the cost to build the plant.”
Dr Sioshansi is the president of Menlo Energy Economics, based in San Francisco, and the publisher of EEnergy Informer, an international energy newsletter.
