Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It has been interesting to listen to the debate today and over the last little while on nuclear. When we talk about experts, it's important to look at what they are actually saying rather than cherry-picking some of the evidence.

The Smart Energy Council, which is renowned for its work in terms of clean energy and other forms of energy in Australia, conducted an analysis and found that the cost reach was as much as $600 billion—which was the figure that Senator Wong mentioned earlier in question time—to build seven nuclear reactors. That's $600 billion of taxpayers' money to deliver some energy in maybe 15 or 20 years time.

A recent report from the CSIRO, another well-respected agency on both sides of politics—calculated that the costs for large-scale nuclear reactors revealed that the electricity generated from nuclear power in Australia would be at least 50 per cent more expensive than solar and wind. Yesterday, in the Australian Financial Review, a paper renowned for its analysis and impact on the business sector in Australia, wrote an outstanding article looking at the viability of nuclear in Australia, with the headline, 'Nuclear is unviable because of economics, not engineering'. The article goes to the point that the economic numbers simply don't stack up for nuclear. It reads::

The CSIRO—

report that I mentioned—

estimates the cost of 90 per cent renewables, with firming, transmission, and integration costs included, at $109 per megawatt hour. Based on South Korean costs (roughly one-third of the US and Europe), a 60-year lifespan, a 60 per cent economic utilisation rate (as per coal today), and an eight-year build time (as per the global average), nuclear would cost $200 per megawatt hour—nearly double.

Further, the article also mentions:

Its worth noting that, even at 93 per cent utilisation (the highest ever achieved in the US where nuclear is a small share of supply), nuclear is still 25 per cent more expensive than renewables. This is also where the opposition's claim that nuclear will ensure system reliability falls apart. For nuclear, the goals of reliability and viability are fundamentally opposed. To bring nuclear closer to economic viability, it must play a minor role in the system to consistently run at full capacity, with nothing more to give when called upon.

So, as we can see, the costs of nuclear are very high, and this has been the government's argument since the opposition made their announcement, not too long ago, that nuclear power is simply a political distraction, that it is simply too expensive and will ultimately push up costs for everyday Australians.

Reports from other independent experts tell us nuclear can't be built in Australia before 2040. I think even the coalition admits that that is the case. What are we going to do between now and then? Experts also confirm that solar and wind, backed up with storage in gas, is by far the cheapest way to generate power for Australian homes and businesses. And as Senator Farrell also mentioned, our fine Minister for Resources, Madeleine King, has done an outstanding job of securing gas here in Australia, ensuring that we have a gas strategy so that Australian households around the country can tap into the gas supplies that are so desperately needed.

The Albanese's government reliable and renewable plan is delivering cheap, clean power, and this shows that we're on the right track. It's delivering good, lasting jobs in many parts of Australia, particularly in the regions, which have powered Australia's prosperity. The so-called plan that's been put forward by the opposition is a plan that has no costings. The opposition can't tell us what form of nuclear reactor will be built. They can't even tell us how many reactors will be built at the seven sites that have been selected, as we saw from the shadow minister over the weekend on Insiders.

It's worth noting that this government, in the recent budget, is investing heavily. We're investing $22.5 million over the next decade to help Australia become a renewable energy superpower, $3.2 billion for ARENA to promote clean energy innovation, $1.7 billion for the Future Made in Australia Innovation Fund and $6.7 billion for hydrogen production tax credits.