It depends what sort of coal they are mining. If it's metallurgical coal or anthracite which is the oldest coal, there jobs are safe, if it's thermal coal or lignite, if they still have a job now I'd be surprised.supersparky wrote: ↑Sun Mar 17, 2024 4:21 pm I didn't know that any solar panels were still made in Aust. Never heard of Tindo before. But I did know about the charging stations. The mob that I've been doing a bit of work for recently did a big install contract across the local council network a couple of years ago. Big business doesn't want EV"s, same as they want to hang on to oil and coal.
The muppets that run the coal industry up here have an ad on TV that directly criticises the state govt for upping the coal royalties. Dunno what all the coal miners will do for work though if they do ever shut down coalmining.
They will eventually phase out coking coal in iron and steel production, but a lot more hydrogen will need to come on line before that happens ... by then, those still in the coal mining game will transition to hydrogen production.
The majority of hydrogen was produced by steam stripping the carbon from natural gas (methane) but that doesn't help with the carbon reduction targets and potential problems with added methane from leaks makes that method of hydrogen production no longer viable.
Renewable energy to split water, add the carbon to make green methane, then capture the carbon in the steel or recycle it to convert more hydrogen to green methane, and steel production gets green washed
Lots of jobs available now and in the future in the greater hydrogen production industry. By using salt laden water that is useless for agriculture or drinking, the harvested salts have a value path of their own, maybe even leading to sodium battery manufacture in Australia ... we have all the raw materials and renewable energy to do it at a better price than anyone else .... will we see it in our life time ... in the words of that great Aussie Darryl Kerrigan "tell him he's dreaming" T1 Terry
