The future of energy – an Australian way

Niraj Lal

“The first place in Australia to install a permanent electricity grid was the small country town of Tamworth, on Kamilaroi country in New South Wales, in 1888, when street lights were connected to two 18 kW coal-fired generators supplied by the neighbouring Gunnedah black coal basin. The coal was of such excellent quality that it could be literally dug up and shovelled straight into the nearby generator. The ready availability of coal in the Liverpool Plains and across the country was quickly noticed: today, Australia is the world’s second largest exporter of coal. We are the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas. Despite what we might hear from our politicians, Australia isn’t in the process of stopping climate change – we’re selling it …”