You still think SA currently lacks the ability to generate large amounts of power from gas and deisel sources. It does not lack the capacity to generate power, we have a framework and pricing system that leads to the current local generators to not run at capacity. Then depend on a network which fails at the drop of a hat.claybro wrote: There appears to be no large scale plan by any state for new generation based on coal gas or nuclear. Sa's lifeline to Victoria is about to become more intermittent as they generate more power from wind. It is feasible when SE Australia is sitting under a large high pressure during winter and the sun is low in the sky, there will be little available capacity from wind or solar for days at a time. No amount of network rejigging can overcome a lack of generation, and therefore current renewable technology has been proven to be not up to the task of large scale industrial energy requirements. Not saying it never will, but ignoring what is happening will not help in the short term.
Building another large scale base load will not mean the network operator ever turns it on until after a blackout occurs if at all.
Simply building a large power station does absolutely nothing to change what is the current problem.
If the price is cheaper from the Victorian or NSW coal, gas or wind it will be the source of power not your proposed new large scale base load generator in SA.
You need to change the pricing system to prefer local operators.
eg you could put some form of price on carbon that would instantly have the current much cleaner SA generators as cheaper.
But why not "just" disconnect from the national electricity network?
In the end that is what you want, to stop using the interstate power source regardless of price.