THERE are valuable lessons for the Northern Territory from the position South Australia now finds itself in when it comes to energy, despite the embarrassing approach of its Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis. 
According to Mr Koutsantonis, if you criticise renewable energy then you are a climate change denier and his state's "reliance on higher cost renewable energy" is not linked to his state's power shortage.
This despite him saying in the weekend press: "This is coming to Victoria, this is coming to NSW ... every jurisdiction is facing what we're facing now." Mr Koutsantonis is calling for urgent reform of the national energy market rules and in doing so exposed the vulnerability of its reliance on -renewables. The last coal-fired power stations in South Australia closed in   May. Wind and solar make up more than 40 per cent of the state's -energy mix. Territory Labor has a 50 per cent target.
Several major companies, -including BHP Billiton and Arrium, warned Mr Koutsantonis of possible shutdowns because of high energy prices, forcing him to plead for a temporary power spike from a private owner of a mothballed gas-fired power plant. Private energy supplier ENGIE fired up its Pelican Point plant near Port Adelaide for a short time last week, bringing an extra 239 megawatts of power into the grid.
Some may remember Mr Koutsantonis wanted the Northern Gas Pipeline to go south through SA to Moomba but didn't want to contribute anything to it financially.
The southern route was estimated at double the cost and would have been an engineering nightmare given more than 100km of it was through sand dunes.
We now know he wanted it for the gas to solve his government's own failed energy policy and improve the 8 per cent SA unemployment rate.
APPEA argues the current SA situation highlights the need for gas fired generation to offset the intermittent output from renewable sources. "Gas is a perfect partner for renewables, as it can be switched on and off quickly, unlike coal-fired power stations which supply around 80 per cent of eastern states power. We need more gas to enable more renewables. This highlights the risks to a secure energy transition if we lack a sufficient gas supply. NT gas resources can play a real role in delivering reliable, affordable energy to the Territory and the rest of the country." A Territory Labor Government has promised to adopt a renewable energy target of 50 per cent by 2030, just 14 years away.
Opposition Leader Michael Gunner said they will do it because there is enormous "economic and employment opportunities" for the Territory in becoming a world leader in solar and renewable technology creation and adoption.
This, coupled with a Labor moratorium on fracking, means we are not going to be supplementing our energy needs with gas and are now on a similar path to SA. So the question is, how do we avoid the same mistakes SA have made?