- by C Bartholomew
- The Guardian
- Issue #2192
Photo: Gellscom – flickr.com (CC BY-ND 2.0)
One slogan plastered all over the 2026-27 budget is “resilience and reform.” This is, of course, in response to the fuel crisis created by the war on Iran enthusiastically supported by the Albanese government and the Coalition. The phrase “energy sovereignty” is another budget talking point. Anyone who reads through the budget might then be surprised to see relatively little talk about what should be the fundamental element of any resilient energy reform: renewables.
$10 billion will be spent to add only 10 day’s fuel storage. According to the Energy Futures Foundation, a cheaper $3 billion investment over 5 years could deploy 30-50,000 electric trucks, saving up to 1 billion litres of diesel annually. Instead, Australian taxpayers continue to fund much of the fuel used by mining corporations and other big fuel consumers through the fuel tax credit scheme, which incentivises them to continue to use diesel-guzzling vehicles and machinery rather than investing in decarbonisation. Minor support for personal EVs and the ongoing electrification of Australia Post are insufficient.
Funding for the Department of Climate Change, Clean Energy, the Environment, and Water has been gutted by more than half. Funding for the management of World Heritage-listed ecosystems has also been slashed, risking environmental damage, loss of research opportunities, and disrepair of tracks and infrastructure used by the public. The Decommissioning Directorate has been maintained, but measures to force mining companies to pay for clean-up and rehabilitation are still grossly inadequate. A $2.5 billion increase to disaster relief is expected. That’s welcome, but there is no plan or meaningful investment in addressing or adapting to the increased frequency and intensity of natural disasters driven by climate change.
One talking point that is being repeated ad nauseam by the Coalition, One Nation, and corporate media is increased investment in domestic oil refining. This is possibly the worst conceivable plan for addressing the fuel crisis. Aside from the fact that about 90% of Australia’s conventional oil sources have already been used up, oil refineries and oil fields can each take over a decade to set up. Domestic oil production using unconventional sources would likely take longer due to the specialised processes required.
The oil refineries Australia does have are heavily dependent on foreign oil. Since Australia’s remaining commercially viable reserves would not supply national demand for even a full year, any new refineries would also be reliant on foreign oil. This means Australia would still be paying for foreign oil, but now we’d also be paying even more to refine it into fuel ourselves. Add in the massive costs of constructing wells and refineries, and this plan would do nothing but line corporate pockets while making costs even worse for ordinary Australians.
Most notably, Labor has refused to impose appropriate taxes onto gas exports. As the Climate council summarised, “more than $19 billion in annual fossil fuel subsidies and foregone gas tax revenue” has been maintained, while opportunities for clean energy development that protects Australians from disruptions to the global fossil fuel industry have been ignored. Australia already produces five times more gas and ten times more coal than we use, but this has done nothing to shield us from power bill hikes caused by global market disruptions. Meanwhile, renewables and electrification are already contributing to Australian energy security and helping many Australians avoid fuel and energy price spikes.
The fossil fuel industry has an explicit strategy of hiring from within the public service (former ministers, staffers, bureaucrats) to acquire contacts and influence. This builds the infamous ‘revolving door’ of politics, where politicians do their best to please the lobbyists for kickbacks and the promise of a cushy fossil fuel industry job. Add on interventions by the Japanese and US governments in Australia’s climate and resources policies and it is no wonder Labor takes so long to take a step forward: they are still dragging the entire fossil fuel industry behind them.
Labor’s policy is still an overall improvement from that of the previous Coalition governments. Investment in renewables and domestic production of solar and battery tech has increased under Labor, even with this budget’s cuts.
However, the government’s obsession with propping up the fossil fuel industry, now under the slogan of ‘resilience and reform,’ undermines its own renewables policy. Rather than fully committing to a renewable transition while supporting workers in fossil fuel-dependent industries, or even fully funding health, education, and cost-of-living relief, Labor, the Coalition, and One Nation would rather continue spending money to keep us tied at the hip to foreign companies.
Renewables have proven to be cheaper and more reliable than fossil fuels. Most importantly, investment in renewables is not burnt up. The products of renewables investment don’t literally disappear in a puff of smoke. Even if coal, oil, and gas managed to deliver on their promises of security and affordability, they would still only be a temporary solution. The government will never actually deliver ‘resilience’ and ‘energy sovereignty’ until the fossil fuel furphy finally ends.
