Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am committed to ensuring that the people of my electorate of Mallee can access affordable, reliable and sustainable energy. Locals want to know that they can pay their energy bills, that their jobs are protected and that we are tackling climate change. Time and time again in this place I have said that Mallee is positioned to be a national leader in renewable energy generation. I'm pleased to say that the Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction, Angus Taylor, agrees with me. In a meeting with the Murray River Group of Councils yesterday the minister spoke to us about the region's potential in solar, wind and hydrogen production, which is bursting at the seams.

Part of what makes Mallee such a uniquely positioned region for energy development are the bright minds and innovative organisations in it, such as the Mallee Regional Innovation Centre, which has received funding to take part in the nationwide hydrogen research cluster. This research will help advance hydrogen technologies in Mallee and around the country, which is very exciting given the prospect of linking our significant solar assets with the production of green hydrogen. Our government is also investing $15 million to build an innovative solar hydro power plant at Carwarp near Mildura. With 17 hours of energy storage, this facility will capture excess solar energy that would otherwise go to waste.

These are great initiatives which display this government's commitment to developing new technologies to meet our climate commitments and energy needs instead of draining people's pockets with new taxes.

This week, Labor and the Greens proved once again that they are happy to stifle this innovation. In the Senate, Labor teamed up with the Australian Greens to cut $192.5 million of new funding for the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. The proposed changes in funding would have allowed ARENA to invest in the next generation of technologies in energy efficiency, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen development and battery technology. The funding, blocked by Labor and the Greens, included $72 million for electric vehicle and hydrogen vehicle infrastructure; more than $52 million for microgrids in regional Australia, such as the one currently being investigated in Donald, in my patch; and over $20 million for researching improved fuel efficiency in heavy vehicles. This unconscionable decision by Labor and the Greens will impact jobs. The funding would have created over 1,400 jobs across Australia and helped Australian industries become world leaders in emissions reduction. Labor have walked away from clean tech jobs and blue-collar jobs. Labor have shown they don't care about regions like Mallee, our clean energy future or the resources and agricultural industries that drive this country.