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Royce Kurmelovs

@roycerk2.bsky.social
9.4K followers 1.4K following 5.2K posts

Journalist. Author of The Death of Holden (2016) and Slick: Australia's Toxic Relationship with Big Oil (2024). For more me: www.roycekurmelovs.com Get me on Signal: RoyceK.11

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Reposted by Royce Kurmelovs
Tom Quinn @tomquinn.bsky.social · 22h
Absolutely huge announcement out of Korea with KGX now announced. Total package of 1,000 trillion won (that's ~1 trillion AUD!). Steel is a key focus. SK wants to become the first country to mass-produce hydrogen-reduced steel and use that capability to compete in the global green steel market.
esgnews.com
South Korea Announces $747 Billion Energy Transition Plan Through 2035
South Korea’s K-GX strategy mobilizes $747 billion through 2035, combining government spending and climate finance to accelerate the country’s energy
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Reposted by Royce Kurmelovs
ABC News Bot (unofficial) @abcnewsbot.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
WA's energy sector is sounding the alarm over a landmark High Court ruling that overseas emissions from a proposed NSW coal mine were required to be considered when approving the project.
abc.net.au
WA's oil and gas industry watches impact of High Court ruling closely
WA's energy sector is sounding the alarm over a landmark High Court ruling that overseas emissions from a proposed NSW coal mine were required to be considered when approving the project.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
I say this totally pun intended: oh, dear Lord.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Not gonna lie. I do the same.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
My favourite euphemism is an engineering disasters podcast I listen to talking about the physics or engineering of missile strikes, beginning the conversation with the ironic: "So you have a friend and you want to give them a present but you want to deliver it to them extremely fast."
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
"The spread of censored and mangled syntax is happening because people believe, or have experienced, that platforms will silence them for accurately describing the world in plain language. This shit is terrible, and it has to stop."
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Zahra Hirji @zhirji.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
The US Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday it is readying a proposal to loosen federal rules designed to cut methane releases from oil and gas operations. Breaking story @bloomberg.com: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
EPA Readies Bid to Ease Methane Controls for Oil, Gas Companies
The US Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday it is readying a proposal to loosen federal rules designed to cut methane releases from oil and gas operations.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Well, that is what a two-term softly-softly approach will get you: a vacuum that will be filled by the right wing who *love* talking about climate change.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
And there is no "unilateral acceleration". That has no basis in reality and only cedes ground to the the Coalition and One Nation, as that is basically their argument. At this point all the evidence is that delaying phaseout has been a massive climate and national security failure (Ukraine, Iran).
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Yes, I've heard senior Labor figures frame the issue as one of what action the public will authorise. I thinkn it is a fallacy of composition and a dangeroud failure to read the room. The overwhelming message from the electorate has been a consistent call for action. Anxiety as policy doesnt cut it.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Deleted as I thought you were responding to me. Apologies.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
A series of statements that hinge on #2, itself an extraordinary claim that requires extraordinary evidence.
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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
NEW RESEARCH: Pakistan's solar boom is one of the world's most impressive renewable deployment stories. It is also a story about a broken grid, high electricity prices and inequality. This is the first peer-reviewed paper to take a deep dive into it. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
This season of Slow Horses rocks.
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Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 06/10/2026
Former German spy chief arrested for treason ft.trib.al/vePDUVk
ft.trib.al
Former German spy chief arrested for treason
Former intelligence head August Hanning suspected of selling state secrets to a foreign power
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AFP News Agency @en.afp.com · 07/10/2026
Ex senior CIA official who was arrested in May with hundreds of gold bars worth over $45 million in his home pleads guilty to fraud. While at the CIA, David Rush allegedly created a fictitious classified program to obtain government funds and then used them for his personal benefit u.afp.com/S9tU
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
If I may: 1. Labor will face a malicious campaign whatever they do anyway. 2. A managed phaseout of fossil fuels will not destroy the economy. 3. We have to do it or the livable threshold for humanity ends. 4. There was already international consensus in Dubai 2023. 5. Change takes leadership.
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Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 07/10/2026
Investors are witnessing ‘the best earnings and margin growth in our lifetime’ spurred by lavish spending on the AI build-out, with S&P 500 profits forecast to have risen 27% from a year earlier, according to Goldman Sachs. ft.trib.al/hZYrase
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Nick Miller @nickdmiller.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Background here:
drilled.media
New Zealand to Become First Country in the World to Lock the Courthouse Door on Climate Change - Drilled
Borrowing a tactic from the United States, New Zealand will adopt a law authored by industry to give legal immunity for tort claims against fossil fuel producers and big emitters.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Whatever the facts, the politics here is prelude to a future right wing government giving liability waivers along the lines of New Zealand and the US. The short term effect is to keep operations going. The long term result is to stop an Australian company being sued for causing climate harms.
"Today’s decision by the High Court in relation to MACH Energy’s Mount Pleasant project is a further blow to Australia’s prospects of meeting continued demand for our high-quality coal from global customers.

Developing a coal mine in Australia is already difficult enough because of long approval times, lawfare by activists and high royalties and other taxes.

The Mount Pleasant Optimisation Project was approved four years ago after a rigorous assessment process that spanned several years, representing around $2 billion in inbound investment in the Australian resources sector by investors in Indonesia and Japan, two vital trading partners for Australia.

Since that approval, the Project has been subject to numerous legal appeals, forcing the proponent to seek clarity from the highest court in the land.""Since that approval, the Project has been subject to numerous legal appeals, forcing the proponent to seek clarity from the highest court in the land.

This decision sends a very negative signal to Australia’s trade and investment partners about sovereign risk in this market.

Australian resource companies should not be forced into a situation where well-funded legal attacks over a number of years require a High Court appeal.

These legal challenges seek to game the legal system by creating uncertainty and delay without ever having to pay costs.

Other investors in Australia’s resource sector will carefully review the outcome from today’s High Court judgement and the potential ramifications for other projects."
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
I would love a legal opinion about whether 1) the Commissioner can "consider" it, find it impossible and allow it to proceed, 2) refuse it because it's not possible, or 3) some secret third thing.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Good questions. No idea. I haven't read the judgment, just the short form statement from the court. It seemed to suggest that the Commission had to consider imposing controls that would limit Scope 3 emissions. I'm not sure how you do that beyond not doing it.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Well, sort of.
theguardian.com
Hunter Valley community group wins landmark high court climate change case over Mount Pleasant coalmine
Ruling on Mount Pleasant coalmine shows ‘we cannot continue to dig up coal … and pretend the consequences have nothing to do with us’, group says
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The Fig Economy @figgityfigs.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Sometimes my wife and I like to send each other text messages as though they’re democratic fundraising messages, and I believe she has produced the jewel of the form.
, it's
and I
have some personal news to share with you.
Being a mom is one of the greatest joys of my life, and I feel deeply that we should have salad tonight
This year has been challenging in many ways, and I have immense gratitude for the kindness and support of family, community, and people like you who have continued to stand by me through everything. It means the world, and I wanted you to be among the first to know that squash is in the oven and kale is in the fridge.As many of you are aware, ve been navigating one of the most challenging periods of my day while waiting for dinner.
Facing baseless federal hunger brought on by not eating since lunch, fighting for the working kids of this country, and now caring for a mean toddler and helping him grow up in a world that isn't always easy. But it has also reminded me exactly why I do this work and who I do it for.
I will never stop working to eat dinner. I will never stop fighting for what is right, even when there is also some feta in the fridge. And I will never stop being so very thankful that you are by my side in this important work and that there is tahini in the pantry for dressing
With love and gratitude,
stop to end
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Matt Binder @mattbinder.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
the tech industry is about to invent books
Andrew Yeung 
@andruyeung
X.com
We created gyms because modern day work no
longer required physical activity. Without exercise,
our muscles atrophy.
I predict we'll need gyms for our brains too, once Al
starts doing our knowledge work.
10:53 PM • 10/4/26 • 1.3M Views
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Reposted by Royce Kurmelovs
Daniel Swain @weatherwest.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Just did some number crunching using latest (Oct 1) ECMWF seasonal data, and I must say that I've never seen such high predictive confidence in a very wet California winter. This is a truly extraordinary forecast amid a record-strength El Niño event. [Thread: please read to end.]
Model-relative sea surface temperature anomalies for November 2026–January 2027. The supplied grid is displayed without added smoothing or coastal filling. Beige marks land and gray marks missing ocean values. The main colour scale spans -2 to +10°F, with white at zero. Hot pink marks anomalies above +10°F. This map does not establish an operational ENSO category.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
I mostly disagree on the characterisation that criticisms are about "symbolism". They go to authority and trust that in turn affect the weight given to any policy proposal. The Australian approach has costs—especially when everyone sees you extending the life of coal mines and turning the gas valve.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
There was significant ministerial representation from other countries at the meeting in Colombia. It is not the only example but it is a clear example given Australia pitched to host COP31 and Bowen is official co-President for Negotiations.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
I have never adopted the framing by News Corp and others. The point is that policy is downstream of politics. You have to do the politics. You can't show up with a nice shopping list of policy positions in the hands of an official with no authority to speak to the public and say "job done".
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Sorry, that is not serious. There is a difference between politics and policy; certain actions signal to other states and actors where priorities lie. Australia already has a reputation of being inconsistent on climate. You can reject what I'm telling you but the fact remains that is the perception.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
All I can tell ya is I've had several conversations now where it has been quietly noted that Australia wants things but also that Australia's leadership does not consistently turn up, especially on climate. Then Australia expects the world to show up when it hosts a party.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Because we were a founding member of the bloc, whose responsible minister is also serving as COP co-President of negotiations. I can tell you from various conversations it was not viewed positively.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Australia did not send a minister despite being a founding signatory to that pact. It sent a departmental official.
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Tim Baxter @timinclimate.naruresearch.com.au · 06/10/2026
Tomorrow at 1pm Australia's High Court will hand down a judgment in MACH Energy v Denman Aberdeen Muswellbrook Scone Healthy Environment Group, which is one of the first climate law case to find its way to the High Court in a very long time. Enviro Justice Australia have an explainer here:
envirojustice.org.au
High Court climate case could reshape future fossil fuel approvals
A community group from the Hunter Valley has taken a climate case all the way to the High Court. The outcome could influence how governments assess the climate impacts of future coal and gas projects ...
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke before, warning Australia is in for a rough summer. "Super El Nino may test us all. In Australia we are expecting a summer of floods, of cyclones, of extreme heat and extreme behaviour," he said.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
At pre-COP in Fiji, leaders are making statements after returning from a visit to Tuvalu. There, Pacific leaders repeatedly called for leaders phaseout of fossil fuels and a defence of language to that effect. President Surangel Samuel Whipps Jr is speaking now and is reiterating this call, again.
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Reuters @reuters.com · 06/10/2026
Hungary to open Communist-era informer files in reckoning with Cold War past reut.rs/4hL9lc3
reut.rs
Hungary to open Communist-era informer files in reckoning with Cold War past
In a historic move, Hungary will soon start releasing tens of thousands of Communist-era police ​files in an online public database, giving people access to lists of informers and collaborators used by the former state security services.
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Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 06/10/2026
not the main point here but that is some gorgeous design
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The Klaxon News @theklaxon.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
🚨The National Party has claimed the “major party model” is “broken”...and is being “replaced” - amid speculation it is preparing to merge with Gina Rinehart’s One Nation. Leader Matt Canavan refusing to rule out merger, as party courts Rinehart's far-right... theklaxon.com.au/3hzc
theklaxon.com.au
Nats "preparing One Nation merger" - The Klaxon
The National Party has claimed the “major party model” is “broken” and is being “replaced” — raising speculation it is preparing to merge with Gina Rinehart’s One Nation.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
"A sharp sell-off in US government bonds is starting to reverberate across corporate America, forcing companies to overhaul their borrowing plans and even raising the spectre of defaults among the most lowly rated businesses."
ft.com
Surge in borrowing costs hits corporate America
Sharp sell-off in US Treasury market starts to feed through to junk-rated companies
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
I am familiar with this book. I also wrote my own:
uqp.com.au
Slick
A riveting expose of the global oil industry’s multi-decade conspiracy to muddy the waters around the science of climate change and use the Australian government to undermine worldwide efforts to addr...
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
👇
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Yes, there is a sense that Albanese will be presenting the Pacific to the Pacific. It is embarrassing for a government that set expectations high to begin with but the event does not succeed or fail on that metric.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
To be clear: the Pacifika reps did talk about fossil fuels. The underlying note was one of irritation. By "official speeches" I meant the pols.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Also: net zero references to "fossil fuels" in any of the official speeches. They are the forbidden words.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Seriously, they're really good. My videos do not do this choir justice.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Fiji cultural victory.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
COP Co-President for Negotiations Chris Bowen offered a hopeful note in his frame. "I am confident COP31 will be remembered as a moment when the world took a positive step. [...]When the world declared that multilateralism mattered.” (May not be verbatim, was multitasking, will update later).
Climate change minister Chris Bowen.
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Royce Kurmelovs @roycerk2.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Tabuya: "You have to be present to be heard. You must have a seat at that table and you will be heard."
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