Not sure why US results would force Australian changes.
The Albanese government will delay its 2035 emissions reduction target beyond the federal election as Donald Trump’s stance on the issue forces the Climate Change Authority to delay its call on Australia’s ambitions…
Under the rules of the Paris Agreement on climate change, member nations must set increasingly ambitious emissions reduction targets every five years, and the deadline for Australia’s 2035 contribution is February.
However, Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen cannot set his target until he considers advice from the CCA, and the election is due by May.
“Brazil adopted the Paris Agreement and submitted its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to the UNFCCC in 2016 and its Updated NDC in 2020 in support of its adaptation commitments and continued economic and social development agendas. Through its NDC, Brazil has committed to reduce its GHG emissions by 37% below 2005 levels, by 2025.”
Looking at carbon dioxide emissions, the number for Brazil in 2005 was 364 million tonnes. In 2023 the number had increased by a third to 486 million tonnes.
No reason given for the cancellation of the large project.
Plans for a new, large solar farm have been put on pause “indefinitely” by its project team. The 675-acre (275-hectare) plot of land near Mendlesham in Suffolk was earmarked for the White Elm project by Spanish firm Elmya RPC Grange Road Limited…
In a statement on its project website, the firm said it had “taken a decision to pause development of the project indefinitely”.
In 2023, BHP announced it would spend about $US2 billion ($3 billion) building more than 500 megawatts of large-scale wind, solar and battery projects…But internal BHP documents seen by the ABC show the miner binned the plans last year because of budget cuts…“Due to capital constraints, the project has ceased,” BHP noted in one document seen by the ABC…
In its recent annual report, the mining colossus revealed it had pared back to $US500 million ($759 million) — from $US4 billion previously — the amount to be spent on “operational decarbonisation” by the end of the decade…Central to the reduction was BHP’s decision to defer investing in electric truck and train haulage technology that could slash the company’s diesel use. The miner explained the deferral had been prompted by delays in the development of suitable electric technology that could replace conventional diesel varieties.
And it presaged news, reported by independent WA media outlet Boiling Cold, that fellow iron ore miner Fortescue had also gone back to the drawing board on its plans to electrify its train fleet.
More from the BHP articles reflecting the higher grid costs of renewables:
Mr Berridge noted miners in many ways had led the charge towards renewable energy because it often made sense for them to do so. This was because mines tended to be “micro grids” in their own right…
“More solar has crept into the optimal energy mix up to circa 30 to 40% depending on where that project is located. And I think it’s starting to plateau at around about that level.”
However, Mr Berridge said the costs of running a mine on renewable energy started to rise “exponentially” beyond a certain point as the need to compensate for the intermittency of wind and solar power mounted.
The bloc had aimed to cut emissions by approximately 90% compared to 1990 levels by 2040, forming a critical milestone on the path to net-zero by 2050. However, several member states—most notably France, Italy, and Poland—have raised concerns over the economic impact and feasibility of such an ambitious target…
The delay means the EU will likely miss a September deadline set by the UN to submit its revised 2035 climate goals.
The expansion of international climate policy commitments increased by just 1% in 2024, with only 17.7% of global emissions now covered by legally binding net zero pledges, according the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s annual Climate Action Monitor…
According to the OECD, the slowdown in climate commitments since 2021 contrasts significantly with the prior decade, when average emissions reduction policies expanded by about 10% each year.
“This slowdown can no longer be explained by the COVID-19 pandemic or economic shocks: it reflects a loss of momentum in implementing effective policies,” the report said.