[Peakoil] Energy symposium last Friday

[Leigh Kite]

I couldn't help but think that drilling 8Km deep holes in the earth at many 
points around the globe and then sending high pressure water down it may not 
necessarily be a good thing...

But then again, why stop at forrests, oceans and the atmosphere when we 
could finish the job by destroying the crust as well...

Cheers,

Leigh

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Paul Pollard" <pollard at netspeed.com.au>
To: <peakoil at act-peakoil.org>
Sent: Tuesday, August 22, 2006 3:40 PM
Subject: [Peakoil] Energy symposium last Friday


>I spent most of last Friday hearing most of the speakers of an energy
> symposium at the ANU held as part of the Science Festival.
>
> Many of the speakers were the Australian leaders in their field, ranging 
> over
> nuclear, transport, hot rocks, wind, etc. Overall it was very informative,
> recognising that speakers have their own issues to push.Presentation was
> powerpoint; no papers were issued.
>
> Much of what was said was familiar to me and no doubt to many on the peak 
> oil
> list. Following is a few points which particularly struck me, or were new,
> which I hope will make sense.
>
> Graeme Pearman (was head of CSIRO atmosphere division).
> - Data from many ports round Australia now showing gradual rise in sea 
> levels
> over a century, due not to ice melting but to expansion of sea waters.
> - 4th Assessment Report of IPCC is due in 2007.
> - Generally accepted now that CO2 in atmosphere effectively lasts 80 
> years.
> - Coal industry now recognises global warming problem and the need to 
> change,
> and need guidance because they don't want to invest billions in technology
> that will in time be penalised.
>
> Andy Rigg - Carbon capture and storage (CCS) (geosequestration) CRC
> - The capture and compression part of the process is 70-90% of the cost of
> this approach, storage a lesser part.
> - CO2 is held in tiny gaps in the rock, due to rock's porosity.
> - A CCS cost of US$20 a tonne is looking feasible. (Comment: I think this
> depends on suitable sites for power stations, but on a rough calculation 
> this
> would mean only about a 25% rise in the cost of generating coal based
> electricity in Australia, to say 5 cents a Kwh, so if it comes to pass 
> this
> would make CCS with coal-fired power very greenhouse competitive).
> - There is considerable experience with piping CO2 already.
> - There are plenty of suitable geosequestration potential sites in 
> Australia.
> - See www.CO2CRC.com.au
>
> Doon Wyborn  - Geodynamics - SA hot rocks developer.
> - They are drilling down to 3.5-4 km, in their northern SA site.
> - All of Australia's electricity grid requirements for 70 years could be
> provided from just this one area of hot rocks.
> - If they drilled down to 6 km, this figure could be doubled.
> - They have successfully further fractured the rock at 3.5 km with
> high-pressure water, a necessary step.
> - In time improvements in drilling, to reach depths of 8 km, will enable
> geothermal energy to be tapped anywhere on earth. Their area is unique
> because it has heat in a geologically stable area at only 3.5 km.
> - They are looking to reducing Australia's emissions by 9% by 2030. 
> (Comment:
> this seems to contradict his statement about providing all of our
> electricity, but perhaps it's due to gradualness of scaling up).
>
> Aidan Byrne - ANU - nuclear
> - Best to site nuclear power plants in Hunter Valley, Latrobe Valley 
> because
> of existing electricity grid layout.
>
> Mark Diesendorf - UNSW - wind power
> - Capacity used in wind power over time is 20-40%, compared with 2-10% 
> with
> hydro.
> - Wind power is not 'intermittent' but variable, and can be managed in a 
> grid,
> to competitively provide 20%. Above this point less economic.
> - Currently wind power is cheaper than nuclear in Britain, US, and cheaper
> than gas in US.
> - In Australia costs 7.5-8.5 cents Kwh (which Diesendorf claimed would be
> cheaper than coal with goesequestration (CCS).
> - Wind needs a more distributed grid - current grid pricing discriminates
> against local, low transmission-cost energy, and subsidises large 
> generators
> further away.
>
> David Lamb - Transport group CSIRO
> - ABARE forecasts on oil production, consumption unrealistic - aren't
> reconciled.
> - Big price increases in oil likely.
> - There is no easy alternative to conventional oil in medium term, and 
> outcome
> is likely to mean a mixture of transport answers, such as small electric
> cars, hydrogen for buses using CNG, electric bikes. (He said China was 
> making
> electric bikes by the million).
> - Australia needs future transport planning, which isn't happening at all 
> at
> present.
>
> Hugh Saddler - energy policy consultant.
> - Present policies not encouraging a properly competitive energy 
> technology
> market, taking greenhouse effects into account.
> - Combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT) (very efficient gas for electricity)
> without geosequestration was almost as efficient as coal-with-
> geosequestration in reducing Australia's emissions.
> - To fairly encourage alternative power, the electricity grid needs to be 
> a
> web not as at present a set of lines radiating from coal fired power.
> - China especially, and India, are outpacing Australia on new
> greenhouse-better energy technologies, contrary to Government claims about
> Australian leadership.
>
>
>
>
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