Australian electricity supply industry - lessons for a prospective energy transition
An environmentally extended input-output analysis (EEIOA) of the Australian electricity supply industry in presented. The analysis combines the Australian national accounts with the energy account to disaggregate the feedstock energy from the energy needed 'to run' the industry. This permits an examination of the energy-return-on-investment (EROI) and related energy intensity metrics. The results will be discussed with an emphasis on prospective energy transitions.
Graham Palmer is a researcher, with an industry background as an engineer and researcher in manufacturing, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) and electronics. He has published in the area of biophysical economics, renewable energy, life-cycle analysis, and energy-economic modelling.
Graham obtained his PhD in the area of energy-return-on-investment (EROI) of electricity supply.His current research interests include the future roles of emerging energy storage systems.
PhD Project:
- High quality energy, including electricity, underpins economic development
- EROI provides a physical measure of the resources needed to deliver electricity to society
- Electricity is valuable only within the context of a system, but ascertaining the value of particular components can be challenging
- Electricity pricing is multi-layered and rules based
- EROI offers a pathway to bypass the complexities of electricity pricing to inform energy and climate policy
Supervisor: Dr. Roger Dargaville
Start Date: December 2014 Completion: 2018
Contact: graham.palmer@climate-energy-college.org