And from the S.M.H.Playing with hot rocksWith a government cap...

And from the S.M.H.

Playing with hot rocks


With a government cap on carbon emissions getting closer by the day, AGL Energy has bought almost 10 per cent of the hot rocks business, Torrens Energy.

AGL paid $2.2 million for its stake in the geothermal exploration business and secured itself the right to a half-share in the development of any project it helps fund.

Although the price tag is small, UBS energy analyst David Leitch reckons we can expect further purchases like this in the energy sector - which contributes close to 40 per cent of the economy's emissions - as the power generators scramble to find ways of creating electricity.

Eventually the venture wants to sell electricity into the national market, but that is a gamble: geothermal energy is among the least advanced renewable energy methods and the deep-well technique that Torrens is pursuing has never been done on a commercial scale.