Electricity systems around the world are changing, with the Paris Agreement of 2015 a catalyst for much current change. The Australian government ratified the agreement by committing to 26–28% emissions reductions below 2005 levels by 2030. Reduction in emissions from electricity generation has become the focus of these targets. To decarbonize the grid to meet targets while building firm, dispatchable generation capacity to support the system, a new metric is required to measure success. The complete paper explores the outputs of the model of energy and grid services (MEGS), illustrating outcomes if a single technology group is favored.
Introduction
The majority of electricity in the Australian National Energy Market (NEM) is provided by synchronous thermal power generation, which also has delivered services required for grid stability such as inertia and frequency control.
