Issue 240 – Energy issue

‘Intelligent control’ the key to grid-friendly solar

The economics of distributed energy has put Australia at the forefront of redesigning the electricity sector before most of the rest of the world. Just ask the residents of Yarrabilba.

Building a one-stop-shop for all our energy data needs

Australians go through more than 6,000 petajoules of energy every year to keep everything from their phones to their factories running. It’s a nice number for pub trivia, but if you’re a policy maker, researcher, or investor in our nation’s future energy demands, you’ll need something better than a back-of-the-envelope calculation. CSIRO’s Energy Use Data Model could soon come in handy.

‘Baseload’ power and what it means for the future of renewables

In the new world order of mixed-source energy, trusty baseload power is often misunderstood. It's not just a question of what baseload can do for renewables, but what renewables can do for baseload power.

Under the hood: the lowdown on EVs and low-emission vehicles

You’ll have heard the usual arguments against electric cars – limited range, too few recharging stations around to make them worthwhile, and the problem of battery disposal. On the other hand, say proponents, electric vehicles offer the prospect of ‘zero emissions’ driving.

As rainfall variability increases, do our graziers have solutions?

Graziers the world over are facing increasingly variable rainfall, new research shows. The next question is: How will they manage their livestock as they face this unpredictability?