Australia’s battery-powered revolution: inside the 5 June Guardian Weekly

3 June 2026 at 18:00

How to change the energy market from within. Plus: Is Iran Trump’s Vietnam?

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Last week, as the war in Iran continued to choke global oil supplies, the UK government announced a 13% increase in the cap on energy prices. But it was another related story on the other side of the world that caught my eye.

In Australia, the energy minister announced a fall of up to 10% in the benchmark electricity price in parts of the country, driven by record levels of renewables and batteries in the power grid.

There is No “Free Lunch” | All Claims of “Free Energy” are Fraudulent

Bible Science Forum

By: John Gideon Hartnett

15 November 2025 at 00:35

Maxwell Chikumbutso's claim of a "free energy" vehicle powered by radio frequency energy, contradicts established physics, particularly the laws of thermodynamics. All forms of energy involve costs. Chikumbutso provides no evidence to support his "free energy" from radio-waves claim. It is foolish to believe in unverified revolutionary energy solutions.

Understanding Dirty Electricity | Causes and Effects

Bible Science Forum

By: John Gideon Hartnett

4 November 2025 at 21:30

The generation and evolution of electricity is discussed, highlighting significant milestones from early static electricity experiments to modern AC power generation techniques. Dirty electricity, characterized by high-frequency electrical noise, can lead to health issues. There is a strong need for more research on this electromagnetic pollution and its health impacts.

Exclusive: Leaked documents show BHP’s climate backtrack - podcast

The Guardian - Energy

By: Presented by Nour Haydar · with Christopher Knaus. Produced by Miles Herbert and Joe Koning who also did the sound design and mix. Hannah Parkes is the executive producer

25 May 2026 at 11:30

Nour Haydar speaks with Christopher Knaus about the BHP files – the cache of internal documents leaked to the Guardian and the ABC’s Four Corners – which show that the world’s biggest miner has war-gamed ways to massively delay decarbonisation

Additional audio in this episode was sourced by Financial Times Live

Read more:

The household battery revolution that could change energy bills … and the world

The Guardian - Energy

By: Adam Morton and Petra Stock

31 May 2026 at 01:00

Australia is pioneering a revolution in home renewables and battery use, proving what is possible with the right policies

The timing was rich with symbolism. As intense heatwaves pummelled Europe and Asia, and oil markets around the world leapt and sputtered, the two big chimneys of one of Australia’s largest power stations were being demolished. Meanwhile, the Australian energy minister was holding a media conference to hail a fall of up to 10% in the benchmark electricity price in parts of the country.

Quietly, and with surprisingly little fanfare from the rest of the world, Australia is pioneering a revolution in home renewables and battery use, proving what is possible with the right policies. The country was already one of the global leaders in domestic solar power, with panels on one in three homes. It also remains, however, a major contributor to the climate crisis through its vast fossil fuel exports. But it is batteries that are giving Australia a new burst of speed.

Power play: what to consider when installing a home battery in Australia

The Guardian - Energy

By: Royce Kurmelovs

30 May 2026 at 01:00

More than 400,000 batteries have been installed under the cheaper home batteries scheme. Here’s how to get the best bang for your buck

Change by degrees offers life hacks and sustainable living tips each Saturday to help reduce your household’s carbon footprint
Got a question or tip for reducing household emissions? Email us at changebydegrees@theguardian.com

If Australians love solar, they are head over heels for home batteries. More than 400,000 batteries have been installed under the government’s subsidy scheme.

Here’s what you need to consider if you’re looking at getting one installed.

Blair’s fossil fuel ideas ‘bizarre’ in face of energy and climate crises, experts say

The Guardian - Energy

By: Fiona Harvey Environment editor

28 May 2026 at 13:41

Energy specialists say abandoning net zero and increasing oil and gas drilling would cause more instability for Britons

UK politics live – latest updates

Abandoning net zero and drilling for more oil and gas in the North Sea would be a massive setback for the UK and would not help the economy, leading experts have said in response to claims by the former prime minister Tony Blair.

“This is a bizarre intervention to make during the worst May heatwave on record and when the Iran crisis is providing yet more evidence of the enormous costs of oil and gas,” said Ed Matthew, the UK programme director at the E3G thinktank. “Clean energy is cheaper energy – it protects our bills from prices skyrocketing, its running costs are virtually zero, and it doesn’t cause climate change which threatens economic collapse ... The government should ignore Blair’s ideological nonsense and focus on what works.”

Power to the people: how ‘balcony solar’ could help fight rising US utility costs

The Guardian - Energy

By: Ben Tracy of Climate Central

27 May 2026 at 12:30

More Americans are using small solar panels in their back yards or balconies as a clean way to cut their electric bills

If you feel like your electricity bill just keeps climbing, you aren’t imagining it. Since 2020, US residential energy prices have surged by about 30%, making power the largest household energy expense behind gasoline, according to the US Energy Information Administration.

But for residents like Alex Curtis, the days of feeling powerless against rising costs are coming to an end. Curtis is waging a war on his electric bill, and his new weapon of choice is a lightweight, thin-film solar panel.

Landlord inaction on energy upgrades stops renters saving $20bn on power bills in a decade

The Guardian - Energy

By: Petra Stock

26 May 2026 at 15:01

Property owners’ lack of motivation due to ‘split incentive’ is main reason rental properties are missing out on energy upgrades, research finds

Renters make up nearly a third of Australian households yet many are missing out on energy upgrades – such as insulation, appliances and rooftop solar – that could slash their power bills and improve home comfort.

The problem, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), is landlords’ lack of motivation.

The BHP files: World’s biggest miner BHP backtracks on climate action with key projects put on ice, leaked documents reveal

The Guardian - Energy

By: Christopher Knaus and Adam Morton

25 May 2026 at 11:30

Exclusive: Cache of internal documents leaked to the Guardian and the ABC’s Four Corners show multinational has war-gamed ways to massively delay decarbonisation

Revealed: the internal BHP memo that slammed the brakes on world’s biggest miner’s climate push
Read more from the BHP files investigation here
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The world’s biggest miner has halted or delayed projects to cut vast amounts of emissions and has quietly war-gamed options to push major climate investments in its Western Australian iron ore operations into the next two decades, internal documents show.

An exclusive investigation based on documents leaked to the Guardian and the ABC’s Four Corners can reveal that BHP, one of Australia’s biggest historic emitters, has dumped plans for a facility that could have significantly reduced emissions and has put on ice renewable projects designed to power its iron ore operations in the vast, resource-rich Pilbara region.

Revealed: the internal BHP memo that slammed the brakes on world’s biggest miner’s climate push

The Guardian - Energy

By: Christopher Knaus and Adam Morton

25 May 2026 at 11:30

Exclusive: BHP once dubbed climate change an ‘existential’ threat. But leaked documents show it has backtracked on decarbonisation at a vast network of mines

Read more from the BHP files investigation here

In the middle of 2019, London was sweltering through a heatwave.

Temperature records tumbled. Frail, ill and elderly people died in their hundreds.

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