Debate closed

Nuclear is the only option beyond the shores of La La Land

There's a risk that I may repeat myself in this column, but it is the unavoidable pitfall of writing about energy policy. The fundamental engineering challenge of running a grid 24/7 remains the same, even as the proposed solutions become more fanciful.

The make-believe debate about the best replacement for coal is an indulgence Australians can ill afford. The laws of physics and the logic of engineering tell us there are only two credible sources of replacement energy.

The first replacement for coal is coal which Australia has in abundance and has proved itself over more than a 100 years as a damn fine way of generating electricity.

The only other credible baseload generation technology is nuclear. The onus on nuclear opponents is to demonstrate there is another feasible way of producing despatchable power on demand 24/7 because that's what the customers demand.

So far, they haven’t come close.