Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Hansard source

As the senator would know if he'd examined the Integrated System Plan, it does include a costing for the capital costs associated with building the grid out to 2050. So the answer is: it is released and updated on a regular basis by way of the Integrated System Plan. That's the basis on which we establish our policies to deal with the transition that's underway in the electricity system.

The truth is that it is underway, Senator Roberts. I know that that is a proposition you don't agree with, but in just two years we've seen a 25 per cent increase in our national grid in the cheapest and cleanest form of energy that there is, which is reliable renewables, and we've ticked off enough reliable renewables projects to power three million homes. Those things matter. Establishing a clear pathway for the electricity supply that's necessary to meet the needs of households and businesses is an absolute priority for this government and should be for every other government as well.