(EnergyAsia, April 12 2012, Thursday) — The Australian Coal Association (ACA) has included a long-term national carbon capture and storage (CCS) strategy among 12 recommendations submitted to the federal government’s draft Energy White Paper.

ACA chief executive Nikki Williams said the use of CCS technology is key to economically achieving emissions reductions targets.

She said: “If Australia is to meet our energy emissions targets at the lowest cost, then it is vital that the development and extensive deployment of Carbon Capture & Storage receives bipartisan support.

“CCS is the only technology available to significantly reduce emissions from the use of fossil fuels including coal and gas-fired power generation, natural gas processing associated with LNG production and other industrial activities such as cement and steel manufacturing.

“Failure to provide public support for CCS will come at a substantial opportunity cost. Treasury modelling for both the carbon tax package and the CPRS demonstrated that without CCS, domestic carbon emissions and mitigation costs would both be higher.

This means that policies which fail to support the development of CCS technologies will intensify the economic pain of the carbon price while closing off options to reduce emissions at least cost.

“The final Energy White Paper will set the policy framework for at least the next decade. A definitive technology roadmap and support for CCS is essential to give investors, consumers and planners a clear sense of direction and confidence in Australia’s energy future.

“This energy roadmap would allow Australia to make the most of its significant strategic energy resources including coal, maintain energy security at realistic prices for consumers and business and meet our climate change responsibilities.”

“The Energy White Paper must clearly establish national energy policy objectives to provide direction and certainty for consumers, investors and planners.  It is a welcome step to progress the public energy policy debate in Australia.

“The energy debate has been largely driven by ideology and short-term political objectives and has utterly failed to increase energy literacy among Australians. A genuine bipartisan approach is essential, contributing to improved energy literacy and a heightened awareness of the trade-offs involved with different policy choices.

“Promoting energy literacy is essential to marginalising the politics and ideology that plague the issue and to take the wider community along the road of energy policy reform. I am pleased that the draft Energy White Paper grasps that challenge.

“The responsible development of Australia’s energy resources has generated unprecedented economic wealth for the community. Sustaining this historic dividend requires government policy settings that continue to attract investment in the sector.”