Very different situation here.

The last federal election here pretty much locked in a non-nuclear future, as least for decades. The LNP opposition went to the election with a plan for nuclear generation, and were routed. The first term Labor government were expected to have their majority pegged back, instead they made big gains. While there were a range of reasons for the result, the nuclear policy was a significant part.

Currently we are on track for a solar and wind-driven energy future, as over the next decade or so our coal plants age out and are retired. Big investments in storage and transmission are in the mix, to underpin reliability. It is not all smooth sailing, particularly on the transmission front, but no dealbreakers are yet apparent.

Not only are renewables taking over the grid, it is also happening at the household level - 15 years ago there were incentives for households to install PV generation on their roof, and it was a massive success. At the last election a subsidy was offered for household batteries, and indications are that it will be similarly popular.

I have a 10kw PV array, and am waiting on delivery of a 32kwh battery. That will allow me to, theoretically, supply all my own consumption and have some left over to sell back to the grid. My problem is that my array is 15 years old and inefficient, and in winter when generation is low and consumption is high, I will need to import from the grid, for example in bad weather. Summer, when my consumption is lower and generation higher, I will be exporting lots. To fix the winter shortfalls, I am looking to replace the old PV panels with new, which will go close to doubling my generation capacity, probably trebling my summer exports. For the next few years I plan on staying on the grid, but I can see me going off-grid in the medium term.

Where the initial policy supported generation into the grid, the latest diverts that generation back into the household. Effectively, it takes that household out of the grid demand side of the energy equation. While it does not seem to overtly promote going off-grid, it will certainly result in some doing so.

The political, industrial and individual momentum towards renewables is looking unstoppable here, and it is difficult to see an opening for nuclear in the domestic energy mix for the foreseeable future.

 

need that AI power.

 

They don't need artificial intelligence. They need human intelligence. If they had more of that they wouldn't be in a pinch.

 

no, you need power in order to run AI, literally.