EDITORIAL: New gas sources key to our clean energy future

Forget the ideology. Forget the wishful thinking and tune out the noise.

Look at the facts.

The fact is the only way Australia has any hope of reaching its 2050 net zero target is by relying on gas to get us there. We will need gas to help process the critical minerals for the solar panels and wind farms which will capture green energy, and the batteries with which to store it.

The fact is that even beyond 2050, we will need gas to underpin renewables to ensure the reliability of our energy network.

And the fact is that our near neighbours in Asia will need Australian gas to help them move away from heavy-polluting sources of fuel such as coal. Australia hitting its net zero targets on time will mean nothing if doing so comes at the expense of other nations’ clean energy aspirations.

The fact is this is a global challenge and we’re all in it together.

It’s positive to see that the Federal Government has recognised these facts with the release of its new gas strategy, which confirms that gas will play a key role in Australia’s energy mix through 2050 and beyond.

It dispels the fantasy — promulgated by the Greens, misguided eco-warriors, and even sections of Labor itself — that we can simply turn the gas tap off and expect renewables to fill the void.

That is not an option. It likely won’t be for a long time, until alternative technologies are both viable and reliable.

In cementing gas at the centre of Australia’s long-term energy future, Labor has chosen facts over feelings.

They’ve kept a cool head in the face of increasing pressure from rabid elements of the environmental lobby. That’s commendable.

Labor knows that gas will be key to its Future Made manufacturing policy.

But the gas industry needs more than just platitudes. Those words need to be backed up with a commitment to exploration so the industry can bring on line new gas projects as existing fields deplete.

We need to get the policy settings right to encourage investment.

And we need to ensure that the approval processes are as smooth and hassle-free as possible, to send new projects from exploration to production while maintaining rigorous environmental standards.

Another fact — demand for Australian gas will increase as we head towards 2050. Perhaps by as much as 30 per cent.

Improvements in carbon capture and storage technologies will help minimise the impact of that increase in demand, but in the short term at least, gas industry emissions may increase. That will sit uncomfortably with some.

The climate challenge is real and immediate.

We know we need to derive more of our power from renewable sources. We also need to keep the lights on in the meantime. Eco-extremists wrongly cast it as a zero-sum proposition — you’re either team gas or team renewables.

Thankfully, Labor has seen through that fallacy. Now they need to back up their rhetoric with action.