Wednesday, 19 June 2024

Ministers statements: energy policy

Lily D’AMBROSIO (Mill Park – Minister for Climate Action, Minister for Energy and Resources, Minister for the State Electricity Commission) (14:16): It is electric in here today – not nuclear electricity, by the way. I am delighted to update the house on how our government is delivering more cheap, reliable renewable energy right across the state. Last week I got to open the brand new Glenrowan solar farm, the first project from our second Victorian renewable energy target auction – a 102-megawatt solar farm that has created 90 jobs for people in the local community and is producing cheap renewable energy as we speak. While I was in sunny Glenrowan, the Premier was in windy Mortlake South to visit the Mortlake South wind farm, another project built in our VRET auction. It is thanks to projects like these ones that Victoria consistently has the lowest wholesale electricity prices in the country. Queensland is almost 100 per cent higher and New South Wales nearly 50 per cent higher than Victoria. That is why our households on the Victorian default offer pay an average of $322 less than those on the default market offer in other states.

But there are some who would rather see Victoria’s power prices go through the roof. The most expensive form of new electricity that you can build is nuclear, and that is exactly what people would get on their power bills – toxic, expensive nuclear power right here at Loy Yang in Victoria. We on this side of the house under an Allan Labor government can absolutely, unequivocally rule out ever allowing nuclear reactors to be built here in Victoria. So if Mr Dutton were ever to become prime minister, one question is really clear that has failed to be answered today: would the opposition seek to overturn Victoria’s legislation to prohibit nuclear activities in this state? It is a simple question that has failed to be answered even today. This whole nuclear message is reckless. We would all be better off, frankly, if Peter Dutton was obsessed with the Barbie movie, like normal people, and not Oppenheimer.