Gavin Pearce (Braddon, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It was great news for the Braddon electorate yesterday. The Prime Minister announced the step up of the government's JobMaker program. Project Marinus is one of the 15 projects that will be fast-tracked for approval. Renewable energy is one of the greatest economic opportunities in the north-west, West Coast and King Island. We're the envy of Australia. We have what the rest of the world needs: the capacity to produce clean, reliable, affordable energy.

We are on track to be 100 per cent renewable by the year 2022. It has been forecast that we could generate up to 200 per cent of our current electricity needs by the year 2040. This means that we will be not only a producer of renewable energy for our own domestic needs but also an exporter of renewable energy across the national electricity grid. Tasmania is perfectly placed to supply Australia with the energy reliability and security it needs, which in turn will inject billions of dollars into the economy and create literally thousands of jobs in our local region.

The proposed route for the Marinus Link interconnector is between Burnie and the La Trobe Valley in Victoria. This means that yesterday's announcement is yet another vote of confidence in our region by Prime Minister Morrison and another job-creating commitment for the north-west, West Coast and King Island by the federal government.

Progressing the Marinus Link and Battery of the Nation projects, as well as backing our broader renewable sector, will underpin these projects. This is a particularly keen focus of mine. Renewable energy is vital to our region because the sector has the potential to secure our prosperity for generations to come. Renewable energy will create thousands of jobs today and tomorrow. Whether it's through pumped hydro, hydrogen, wind energy or the incredibly exciting federally funded wave energy pilot that is about to be commissioned on King Island, these industries have the potential to create a jobs boom. It is estimated 1,400 jobs will also be created over the peak construction phase of Marinus, with up to 2,350 jobs also created from further renewable energy and storage development over the peak construction period for the Battery of the Nation and Marinus developments. The combined investment of Marinus Link and the new renewable energy developments will inject over $7 billion into the Tasmanian economy over the coming years, and a large proportion will be in the electorate of Braddon.

It's important to note that the government's announcement to fast-track the approval for Project Marinus doesn't mean that environmental safeguards will be relaxed. This isn't about reducing environmental standards. We're accelerating projects through existing process by cutting red tape, not by cutting corners. Having stronger and faster environmental approvals through the removal of inefficient administration is key to our economic recovery as we emerge from COVID-19.

Yesterday's announcement continues to build on the work that the government has already been doing to improve the assessment time frames in delivering quick and robust decisions on major projects well ahead of time. Marinus will still undergo an extensive environmental assessment and checks. The announcement to fast-track Project Marinus means that the required due diligence will happen sooner, enabling the project to provide the stimulus that our region needs sooner. Last month the Australian Energy Market Commission confirmed the need for increased renewable energy supply, increased energy storage and increased interstate transmission infrastructure. All of this can be supplied within the north-west, the west coast and King Island, supported by our nationally-significant Battery of the Nation and Marinus Link projects. I am committed to playing my part to secure Tasmania's renewable energy future, working with my state Liberal colleagues to progress these vitally important projects for the electorate of Braddon and for Tasmania.