Australia’s energy ministers have agreed to an independent review of the nation's energy security by chief scientist Alan Finkel. 

After the Federal Government successfully used a storm to force a conversation about renewable energy, it has now lined up its chief scientist (an advocate of both renewable and nuclear power) to produce a new vision for energy security in Australia.

Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg said the recent blackouts in South Australia were a “wake-up call”, linking energy security to higher uptake of “intermittent” forms of power.

Mr Frydenberg has written about the issue in The Australian this week. 

“We must remove ideology from the debate and focus on the practical,” he wrote.

“It’s clear that the Coalition and our international counterparts on the centre right care deeply about the environment and the impacts of climate change.

“But what we will not do is pursue policies that hurt households, weaken our commercial competitiveness and undermine the stability and security of the electricity system.”

Mr Frydenberg said the decision to have Alan Finkel undertake the review was a “major breakthrough”.

“Absent is the Rudd-like hyperbole of the ‘greatest moral challenge of our time’, and in its place a recognition that energy security is back at number one,” he wrote.

“Reducing emissions is important but not at the expense of the lights going out. “