Climate scientist James Hansen and Solid Energy chief executive Don Elder debate how to secure the future of coal, New Zealand, and the world
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Solid Energy defi(n)es sustainability in Southland
Putting Solid Energy’s own definition of sustainable business practice to the test, on the ground in Southland
Read MoreSolid Energy defends its lignite proposals
In which Solid Energy defends its lignite proposals before a Parliamentary select committee, defines sustainability loosely, and fails to define some other things at all, except the megabucks
Read MorePCE and Groser: fix the ETS
In which expert advisory work from the PCE illustrates why the ETS in its present form risks a massive lignite subsidy, and Tim Groser — quite rightly — observes that this would be “ridiculous” and “incoherent”
Read MoreThe last and least loveliest: lignite
When global crude oil sources are ranked and graphed by size and production cost, lignite coal is among the biggest, the most expensive, and the last one on the list. Lignite and Solid Energy need peak oil; it’s a lifeline for them, not a threat
Coal conversion recipe: whip ‘em, and spin it a bit
Solid Energy wants to open up ‘new energy’ and other things: lignite resources, public debate, the company’s own mind, apparently. Shame those dangerous radicals don’t have much to say worth hearing. Shame if they had to be booted out, for asking the wrong questions
Read MoreFilthy rich: our developing energy strategy
Does this government’s ‘developing country’ shtick, or our luck in being small, give us the moral authority to dine richly on oil and coal?
Read MoreJust dirty, not sexy: lignite to liquid fuel
Coal-to-liquid fuel feasibility studies are underway for lignite, the dirtiest coal, as the coal industry tries to dig itself out of a hole
Read MoreThe proverbial brewery piss up... in a coal mine
If you've struggled to gauge the direction of this government, on energy efficiency policy at least, its ad libbing days are numbered. But the lignite to urea fertiliser proposal is fool's gold
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