This is very interesting. I can add to this that the NSW and Victorian governments passed some legislation that all retailers of electricity must offer a percentage of power used be fed into the grid through renewable sources.
Some people go for 100% renewables - this means that if they consume 3Mw power then 3Mw power will be guaranteed to be generated from renewable sources. Would love to know how they calculate this.
The kicker is that they pay for the privilege of using renewable energy, yet they still have to pay a carbon price on their power.
My understanding is that the Renewable Energy Target is actually set by the Commonwealth. Though since it's not really something directly under any S.51 heading I imagine they do it by paying the States and then the States pass the laws to make it work. [1]
I too find it weird that the RET stayed after the introduction of the carbon tax. The entire point of putting a price on emissions is to allow the market to sort out the most efficient way to abate them.
Buuuut of course the RET was started by Howard et al to prop up sugar cane farmers and now it's propping up Gillard's mob in the Parliament. So for now it's unkillable.
[1] On the other hand, when has the concept of limited heads of power ever stopped the High Court from giving the Commonwealth what it wants? I guess they could shove it under 51(i) (interstate commerce) or 51(xx) (the corporations power).
They work out how much renewable generated energy they're obligated to provide (or estimate) and ensure that they have at least that much renewable energy generation capacity. The actual electricity supplied to the households doesn't have to be generated from renewable sources.
The current (conservative) government in Victoria is no friend to renewables. It's brought in rules saying that anyone within 2km of a proposed wind generator has total veto rights, regardless of whether they can see or hear it from their property. There are also six areas in the state where wind generators are simply not allowed, period - most are around coal stations.
I used to work for a company where the owner was also involved in the wind power industry, and every now and then we'd hear things like the above. It ain't exactly being encouraged by our state government, that's for sure.
In the UK, I believe that the electricity companies have to provide a certain percentage of renewable, but electricity paid for by people who want "100% renewable" counts towards that target so people are paying the electricity company to do what it was mandated to do anyway. It's not like the electrons coming into your house are in any way connected with a specific type of provision anyway.
Some people go for 100% renewables - this means that if they consume 3Mw power then 3Mw power will be guaranteed to be generated from renewable sources. Would love to know how they calculate this.
The kicker is that they pay for the privilege of using renewable energy, yet they still have to pay a carbon price on their power.