Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Central Queensland has the ability to produce the power we need, but where is the will from Labor? Here are the facts. Queensland and the people of Capricornia need secure jobs. The price of electricity is hurting families and it is hurting business. Central Queensland has the capacity to produce high-energy, low-emission coal-fired power and liquid natural gas and is leading the way in renewable energy production. It is a simple equation with an obvious solution, but both the federal opposition and the Queensland state Labor government do not seem willing or able to do the maths.

The Queensland Labor government is denying Capricornia vital jobs and business competitiveness by labelling a clean coal-fired power station as not rational. As Australian businesses and families endure rising electricity costs and shortages, the Palaszczuk government is again blocking the solution that would also provide much-needed jobs for Central Queensland.

Business is doing it tough. Without investment in vital infrastructure to drive down the cost of doing business, Australian companies simply cannot remain competitive. If they cannot be competitive, they cannot afford to grow and hire more people. It is that simple. Local businesses are already struggling with rising prices and will turn to less environmentally-friendly options, like diesel, if more economically sustainable options are not provided.

I do not think the city Greens comprehend the repercussions to both industry and the environment if business cannot afford to operate. Labor is literally fuelling the fire by continuing to side with the Greens. It is irresponsible for the economy, it does nothing for the environment and it is creating a business environment that is unsustainable. But at least they can sleep in their air-conditioned comfort with their distorted belief that they are somehow helping. It is easy to talk about six per cent carbon emission variations whilst sitting in the comfort of a luxury air-conditioned apartment in a well-lit suburban street with access to all the electric-powered mod cons. It is not so easy to do the same when you live in regional Queensland, where jobs are few and far between, public transport is virtually nonexistent and the costs of doing business are on the rise. We know that renewables will be the way of the future, but we are not there yet.

As I have said before, the investors in clean coal today will be the investors in renewables in the future. Until we are there, we need to ensure we are delivering affordable power to Australians. Adani itself owns the second-biggest solar farm in the world in Tamil Nadu. They are hoping to invest in similar projects in Queensland. Whitsunday Solar Farm and Hamilton Solar Farm are both expected to be operational by the start of 2018, adding a combined 165 megawatts of renewable energy to the national electricity grid. That is enough to power an estimated 87,000 homes. The projects will lead to 300 jobs during construction. This is a great start, but, as business like Dobinsons Springs in Rockhampton have raised with me, the current cost of storage makes solar unaffordable for operations requiring power 24/7. When operations ramp up, such companies need reliable power, and solar is not able to provide this, especially when it has been cloudy for a few days. It would cost the company millions of dollars to purchase adequate storage.

In April, the coalition government released a framework for a new Australian Domestic Gas Security Mechanism to ensure a secure and adequate supply of gas. The ADGSM is a critical part of the Turnbull government's gas market security plan, aimed at making sure adequate and reasonably priced gas is delivered to Australian homes and businesses. It is time Labor stopped the hypocrisy and got behind such responsible measures.

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