Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Climate Change and Energy. Minister, you're aware that Liddell, Eraring, Torrens, Vales Point, Callide B and Yallourn will all close by 2029, taking 9,000 megawatts from the 32,000-megawatt national grid. Since Snowy 2 at 2,000 megawatts is the only new generation, and with AEMO last week warning of the obvious—prolonged blackouts—is your answer the latest wind farm, with 83 towers that are 580 foot high and are only going to have a lifespan of 90 years? Or does your faith lie in Father Christmas and the tooth fairy? (Time expired)

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm not sure about the Christmas part, but there was a question earlier. I give the call to the Minister for Climate Change and Energy.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I got the gist, Mr Speaker. I thank the honourable member for his question, but I'm afraid the honourable member is not quite correct on some of the issues that he's raised there. In relation to the AEMO statement last week, AEMO actually underlined the need for more urgent investment in dispatchable renewables, a message this government agrees with. And it's not the first time they've said it. AEMO has issued the Electricity Statement of Opportunities twice a year for several years. For example, in 2021 they said:

… the NEM will need more generation, storage and transmission than is currently operating …

In 2020 they said:

Risks remain that under high demand conditions, or if prolonged generation or transmission outages were to occur again, there may be insufficient generation to meet demand …

They said very similar in 2019. They said very similar in 2018.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order, Member for Kennedy!

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They said very similar in 2017. It's all there laid out.

Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What did you do about Kurri Kurri?

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The honourable member for Hume asks what we did about it. Well, they were in office, and they ignored these continual warnings—a decade of denial and delay.

The honourable member for Kennedy says Snowy is the only new generation coming on. I'm afraid that is not correct. In fact, I'm happy to share with the House that in the last financial year AEMO approved 6.8 gigawatts of new generation. That's up from four gigawatts the year before. That's an increase of 2.6 gigawatts, in the last financial year, of new generation approved by AEMO. In fact, AEMO has said there are 3.4 more gigawatts available going into this summer than last summer. There is more generation available this summer than last summer, and the bulk of that is renewable, which is a good thing.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I warn the member for Fairfax.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A point of order, Mr Speaker: the question was that 8,000 is going off. The minister has said 6,000—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Resume your seat, Member for Kennedy.

Resume your seat. Points of order are not a time to debate the question. The minister has the call.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

AEMO also said last week that federal and state initiatives, including transmission projects identified in the Integrated Systems Plan and mechanisms delivering firming capacity, such as the Commonwealth's Capacity Investment Scheme, can address many identified risks over the 10-year horizon. That's a Commonwealth scheme which this Commonwealth government has delivered, which the previous government talked about and could not deliver. What we need is more investment in generation and dispatchable energy. That's exactly what we're getting under the policy settings of this government. That's exactly what we lacked for 10 long years.