Essay by Eric Worrall
Andrew “Twiggy” Forest is an iron ore billionaire who is mounting a crusade against climate change. He also owns Squadron Energy, a major Aussie provider of renewable “solutions”.
Inside Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest’s urgent global climate campaign
By Nick O’Malley
October 28, 2023 — 5.00amOutside, it is one of those perfect Sydney spring days, 26 degrees and a breeze that’s soft on the face.
But I’m under a red light inside a heat chamber in a University of Sydney laboratory experiencing what a potentially lethal temperature feels like, and for this, I blame Australia’s richest man, Fortescue chairman Dr Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest.
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Forrest described calls for everyone to do their bit to tackle climate change as flagrant greenwashing, arguing that there are about 1000 people in the world culpable for climate change and capable of fixing it.
He asked that when it was time to “put heads on spikes, start with mine, but please don’t forget the other 999”.
At another point, he grabbed an audience member’s hand and explained how he had once done the same thing to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modhi, telling him that if he did not address climate change he would have blood not just on his fingers, but all the way up his arm.
The talk had baffled some of those who attended. Why was an iron ore magnate lecturing academics, including health and climate specialists, on health and climate? And what was the urgency of Forrest’s race around the world with this DIY Ted Talk?
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Read more: https://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/inside-andrew-twiggy-forrest-s-urgent-global-climate-campaign-20231026-p5efbc.html#
Lucky Indian Prime Minister’s Modhi’s supporters weren’t in the room when Twiggy manhandled their hero, if this is what happened. Modhi has a loyal following, much like Donald Trump, and Modhi’s followers would have responded pretty much the same as Trump’s supporters would have, if some jerk started manhandling Trump on stage.
But Twiggy has more to say on climate change.
“Savagely imperfect:” Forrest lets fly at coal, nuclear and ex-Snowy boss Paul Broad
Sophie Vorrath 22 May 2023
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Challenged by 2GB’s Ben Fordham to explain why – if coal power supplied 78% of New South Wales electricity demand in the last 24 hours – government would be pushing to switch coal plants off, Forrest’s response was swift.
“Oh mate, because if we don’t, we’re toast,” he said, referring to the threat of irreversible dangerous climate change.
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But has Forrest considered nuclear power?
“It’s not a solution for Australia,” he says.
“If you’ve got 20 years, that’s fine… But when I build iron ore projects, I build them in three years, right? When I’m building renewable energy projects, you can kick them off in three months. It’s such a quick, energetic, inexpensive solution.
“Now, nuclear power plants, if they already exist … you can [use them for] firming power, do that. Do that kind of cyclical power, but don’t do baseload power. Let the punters out there enjoy lower power costs through renewable energy for all their baseload.”
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Read more: https://reneweconomy.com.au/savagely-imperfect-forrest-lets-fly-at-coal-nuclear-and-ex-snowy-boss-paul-broad/
Renewables don’t solve anyone’s energy problems. Even Australia’s climate change and energy minister Chris Bowen recently admitted we shouldn’t expect gigawatts of new renewable capacity to stabilise the grid.
To be fair, Twiggy hasn’t ignored the need to firm renewables, his website lists around 20GW hours of firming projects.
But how much would this “firming” do for Australia?
20GW hours = 7.2 x 1013 joules.
Australia uses around 6000 Petajoules of energy per year, or 6 x 1018 joules.
So Twiggy’s firming projects deliver enough energy to power the grid for:
7.2 x 1013 ÷ 6 x 1018 = 0.000012 years = (x 365.25) 0.004 days = 378 seconds of firmed renewable energy.
Well done Twiggy, all your b*shit renewable and firming projects just kept the lights on for 6 minutes, when the sun goes down and the wind stops blowing.
OK, I didn’t count his hydrogen electrolysis storage plant – but is there a point to counting the hydrogen? If hydrogen worked at scale, nobody would bother with battery packs. And full disclosure, I included all energy use in that 6000 Petajoule figure including oil and gas not used for generating electricity, because you know, electrify everything. And last year was 5700 Petajoule – though at least one previous year was higher than 6000.
Is 6 minutes enough? Anyone who thinks a nation as big as Australia can’t lose all wind energy at night , that a few minutes or hours backup would be enough, needs to look at the image below.
Remember June is southern hemisphere winter, and in winter blocking high pressure systems produce cloudless, bitterly cold nights. According to a Guardian article published that very day, Australia was experiencing the coldest start to winter in decades. So on the night wind power dropped to zero across most of the country, a large percentage of Australia’s population was cranking up their home heating to ward off the bitter cold.
Twiggy, given blocking high pressure systems which kill wind power for days or weeks over the entire continent are a fact of life, too bad you didn’t give reliable 24×7 zero carbon nuclear reactors a chance. Large regions of Australia can also suffer wind droughts which last for months, as South Australia discovered in 2017.
Renewables, even “firmed” renewables, are a nonsense solution to a climate non problem – even if your name is Twiggy.
To be honest I don’t think too many people take Twiggy too seriously these days. Not the ones who can think for themselves anyway.
Where have I seen his picture before? Oh yeah, in the dictionary looking up “grifter”.
He’s a perfect example of the rent-seeking crony capitalist who blusters about a Climate Change ™ mythology that he doesn’t remotely believe in, except that he believes ardently in how lucrative it is for him.
Kind of like an Oz version of Tom Steyer it seems?
The policy makers and those that hand out big bucks seem to take him very seriously. I believe he was given a billion dollars by our government to get green hydrogen up and running. You’d need a lot of wind and solar for that so of course he can’t lose. His sense of urgency is because he knows it’s all about to come crashing down around him.
I guess politicians don’t count though, you were talking about people who could think for themselves.
Never mind wet bulb, “Twiggy” is a dim bulb.
My problem with the undoubtedly smart twiggy is that he has swallowed the
cool aid' of climate alarmism, without any evidence that a global problem even exists! He is a carpetbagger like Turnbull and Brooks who wants Government largess to build his hydrogen dream green machine.savior’ with his virtue signaling hydrogen nonsense, which is even more dangerous than Li ion batteries. Well, it’s no thanks mate from me, do you own dirty work, in the meantime stop scaring people about a non-existent problem.He wants our hard earned to play the
My family returned to Scotland in 1966 when I was 9 years old having spent 15 years living in Hong Kong where my old man was a bit of a celebrity.
He wasn’t happy after our return to Scotland and tried to persuade my Mum to move to Australia. I remember the amazing brochures I took to secondary school where my mates and I pored over them. I was SO excited at returning to the Sun Sea and Surf I grew up with in HK, just on a mega scale.
Mum won the debate.
About ten years ago I began to plan for when my wife and I retired. Australia was at the top of the list for me. I had my bags packed and divorce was pending if my wife didn’t want to join me. My best mate from secondary school had emigrated to the Gold Coast 30 years ago so we at least had head start.
I then watched the political and social deterioration of the country decline so quickly over those ten years and, as bad as the UK is, I decided that my wife was right and we should stay in the UK.
My mate visited us 2 years ago and I was astonished at the change, or more accurately speaking, his deterioration in conservative outlook. From a normally robust and rabidly anti government, conservative Jock, he had turned into some sort of Lilly livered Aussie liberal.
My planned 6 month reconnaissance of the country has been cancelled. Is it really as bad as It seems?
Yes!
Off topic but I still can’t get the images out of my head of the way police brutalized anti lock down citizens including someone just trying to go home getting out of his car. I would never even visit Australia or NewZealand even as a tourist after seeing that now.
Don’t believe the propaganda from the Lefties. We are now reverting back to where we were before Arderns Commie lies took us.
Our (idiot) VP thinks Australia has confiscated all guns. There are more guns in Australian hands now than before the Port Arthur event. Too bad for liberals that Australia’s gun grabbing didn’t work.
I hope so. Trout fishing in NZ is atop my bucket list.
The Victorians have always been a bit odd. Them and the ACT.
Plus Australian wildlife is out to kill you.
Especially the drop bears…
Australia still gets 80% of its electricity from coal.
The top selling vehicle in Australia is the Toyota crew cab. Second is the Ford crew cab. More than 50% of cars are SUVs.
Gasoline currently around $2/l. Diesel a bit more.
The Gold Coast is not my choice of locations although I have a sister still living there.
Infrastructure is not keeping up with population growth in the cities but country living is still relaxing. Country driving is pleasant and uncluttered. Conversation with country folk very easy.
It is a bit of a misnomer to use ULP-91 fuel prices, few cars use this low grade fuel. Last week ULP-98 premium grade was over $2.75/L.
You need to shop around:
https://petrolspy.com.au/map/latlng/-38.030918/145.346115
Cheapest near me today for U98 is $203.8/l.
Costco at North Lakes has U98 at $200.7/l. But you need to pay the membership fee of $60pa to get that.
If it’s the difference of $2.00/L vs $2.75/L that $60 Costco membership is paid for after the first 80L of fuel. Seems worth the membership just for the cheaper fuel costs. 80L is only 21.2 gallons. My Durango holds 22.2 gallons 84 liters. That membership is paid for with 1 tank full
“You need to shop around:”
lol… Nearest petrol station to me is some 40km in the next town.. or 50km to one of the major towns.
You take what you can get.. Use 95 when I can, otherwise 98.
“Country driving is pleasant and uncluttered.”
Albeit a tad bumpy in places 😉
I am fortunate enough to live in a small country town.
Workers who do “things”.. Easy to get on with, down-to earth for the most part.
Far better than Sydney where I used to live.
Good pubs in the town mate? – Get a good steak sandwich and cold beer mate!!
Of Course ! 🙂
In the US, they drive on the right side of the road. In country Victoria, we drive on what’s left of the road.
There is an understanding that if they just joined the potholes together, the road would be smoother.
Australia is generally a very peaceful place, though youth crime is becoming an issue – but nothing like the scale of crime problems in Britain.
People think I’m exaggerating when I say how many confrontations with muggers I had in Britain. Being a big guy I generally told them to f*ck off, which sometimes led to physical confrontation, but I’m too old now for that kind of fun, so that was a big factor choosing Australia.
Perhaps this level of peace is bad for us in some ways, it makes some people very complacent. I had a very heated discussion with a pro-vaxxer a couple of years ago, he actually tried to swing a punch (he missed), he lost it when I asked “you grew up in the 70s, at what point did you start believing the government?”.
Sound public policy and rational governance in Oz deteriorated almost immediately the Labor government led by Kevin Rudd took office in November 2007.
Rudd was and still is the epitome of “All Hat, No Cattle”.
He had a team of excitable recent graduates as advisors who did nothing but draft “announcements” They came day in, day out. And were complete nothing-burgers.
If you can find it on a streaming service, there is a tv series called “Hollow Men” that was all about taking the plss out of Rudd’s government style.
I rate it as good as “The Thick Of It”.
Come and check the place out anyway. It’s best to steer clear of the cities, but that applies wherever you go. Buy an old motor home and join the other grey nomads.
p.s. News reports always focus on the dramatic stuff and politics, so that can seem real from half a world away.
Steer clear of bushfires and floods, and heed the usual advice about discussing religion and politics.
Coming out of a Scottish winter to an Aus summer might be a shock to the system. For a 6 month visit, probably a good time to arrive is early April, then potentially head to north Queensland and the Northern Territory for the winter/dry season, then head south in late July.
Be warned – it’s a b-i-g place. Allow lots of travel time.
Tasmania has some beautiful spots, and has the closest to English weather. You’ll have to go to the New Zealand south island to feel like Scotland.
Can vouch for the B-I-G part
Went for 3 weeks in 2004, rented car at Sidney airport, went up around Bundaberg then back, small blip on east coast on map.
4500km on car
Twiggy is just stoking the climate fire. He is heavily invested in NetZero schemes. As long as these resource hungry initiatives are supported by governments, Twiggy will do well supplying the resources.
What could be better for an iron ore mining magnate than the world scrambling to install massive machines weighing thousands of tonnes, mostly iron, that have a guaranteed output of precisely ZERO.
Hopefully most of the 1000 or so culpable people are answerable to their constituents and they will eventually be replaced by people who recognise the fantasy for what it is and do not give Twiggy a moments notice. China and India have clearly demonstrated that they could not give a rats about CO2. They are more concerned about where their next billion tonne of coal will come from.
Twiggy is just
stoking –stroking something alright! – lol!!!I did some sums based on Snowy 2 yesterday. The current forecast for the 2200MW battery is $25bn if you throw in the interconnectors. Throw in 12GW of wind to enable it to pump as well as feed the 2200 demand for a portion of the time when there is enough wind to supply the pumps as well as the 2200MW of load and the cost almost doubles to $49bn.
So spend $49bn to save 5Mt of coal each year. Current price in AUD for the black variety is AUD180/t. So annual saving is 0.9bn. Would take 54 years if there were no operating and maintenance costs before there was any prospect of saving. However in that time, the wind turbines would need to be replaced twice so throw in another $48bn and you start to see that you are disappearing up your own fundamental.
The brown variety of coal in Australia has little export value so actually costs close to nothing. And the ALP numpties pulling the strings in Victoria wonder why the State debt is spiralling out of control.
The absurd 2200 MW water battery project should be abandoned but Bowen and the government are stuck in a sunk-cost trap.
That is if Snowy 2.0 is ever completed.
Twiggy?
Dame Lesley Lawson DBE (born Lesley Hornby 19 September 1949, in London, England) is an English actress, fashion model and singer, known professionally as Twiggy
“””don’t do baseload power.”””
This imposter should extract his head from his fundament.
Twiggy is a mining baron who hit the mother lode. Subsidy mining. Of course he is going to talk trash, it’s what’s the shareholders want.
As a FMG shareholder (inherited) … I wish he wouldn’t !!
Old mate Twiggy, living in the twilight zone. “Let the punters out there” – huh? I guess that’s you and me, you know the people who actually get and read an energy bill. .lol! Spoken like a true elite psychologically removed billionaire.
Well done Twigster! oh btw – how’s that hydrogen superpower thingy going for you? – Don’t tell me it’s time to fuel up the $98 Million Bombardier Global 7500 jet and go to Canberra again for more money! Its a hard life mate..
up, up and away!!!
I have no general objection to someone earning and working hard over many years to become a billionaire.It is the constant lecturing, piety and as far as twigster goes, the sheer stupidity of thought farts of the elites that do my head in. Just shut up and count your money!
I reckon Twiggy is just another one of these latter-day billionaires who made their fortunes off the back of “environment-destroying” activities, such as mining.
But now he’s succumbing to the guilt trip that his fellow-WEF disciples expect of him.
This playbook has already been practiced by another mining beneficiary – Simon Holmes a Court, son and inheritor of his father Robert Holmes a Court’s mining empire.
Young Simon took hard left-turn a few years ago, now funds ultra-“progressive” climate warrior political candidates.
Even Rupert Murdoch’s son James got clobbered by the guilt stick, and now endeavours to position himself to the left of Bernie Sanders.
For sure. Old Twigster has dug up so much rock he’s now got rocks in his head..
Old mate Simon, you mean the financier of the — we are all independent candidates Teal party.. Simon, Twigster and that other dude talking genuine Aussie billionaire gibberish- Mike ( I have a hyphenated surname) Cannon- Brooks..
Typical of people to give it lip service, and proclaim that “WE” must do something, but then only do a little painless virtue signaling, no real sacrifices, that is for the peasants to do, not the elites.
Twiggy can take a hike.
But it has to be an E-hike
I’d prefer he took a running F-ing jump.
“Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forest is an iron ore billionaire who is mounting a crusade against climate change.”
A mere billionaire against Mother Nature? . . . I’ll take odds that Mother Nature wins.
Who cares about Forrest’s opinion about his business competition or his renewable sales pitch?
That’s a pure conflict of interest.