House debates

Tuesday, 16 March 2021

Questions without Notice

Energy

2:57 pm

Photo of Lucy WicksLucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction. Will the minister please update the House on the Morrison government's commitment to ensuring Australian families and business have access to the affordable and reliable energy that we all rely on? Is the minister aware of any alternative approaches?

Photo of Angus TaylorAngus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) Share this | | Hansard source

I thank the member for Robertson for her question and, of course, for her strong commitment—like all of us on this side of the House—to affordable, reliable energy because she knows how important that is to economic recovery in places like her electorate on the Central Coast. She also knows how important it is to small businesses like Simply Smashing, which is particularly dependent on affordable, reliable energy.

I can confirm to the House that our plan is working. Our plan is working. We've seen seven consecutive quarters of year-on-year wholesale price reductions. Last year alone, we saw a nine per cent reduction in electricity prices in the CPI—unprecedented reductions in electricity prices. Crucial to ensuring that we continue to see that affordable, reliable energy in our system is having enough dispatchable power in our energy systems. When we look to the closure of Liddell in April 2023, we know it has to be replaced with genuine, affordable, reliable generation. We've said we'd prefer the private sector to step up, but, if they don't, we'll step in.

Just a couple of weeks ago I was at Kurri Kurri, looking at the works on the Snowy Hydro project up there. It's ready to go, to build that affordable, reliable gas generation that will fill the gap as Liddell closes in April 2023, and it will complement the record levels of investment we're seeing in renewables in this country, alongside the investment we're making in 2½ thousand megawatts of capacity in the Snowy 2.0 project and $250 million of investment in interconnection and priority transmission projects.

But I was asked about alternatives. The alternative, of course, is the indecision and division of those opposite. because under cover of darkness they recently released their national platform, where they heralded their peace deal on gas—a peace deal on gas. There were 111 pages of waffle there. There was no plan, there was no policy and there was certainly no peace deal. Just ask the member for Hindmarsh, who said, 'Gas won't underpin our recovery,' or the member for McMahon, who replaced him when he was sacked, who failed to back a new gas generator not once, but twice, on ABC Radio. The member for Hunter said, 'Hallelujah,' when we announced our project up at Kurri Kurri. But, as the member for Hunter said, 'The member for McMahon still has his training wheels on.' There might be a new face, but nothing has changed—it's the same old Labor.