Funds hope for second energy cable

ENERGY Minister Josh Frydenberg has talked up the chances of Federal Government funding for a second Bass Strait interconnector while lauding Tasmania’s pumped hydro possibilities.

Announcing the location of 14 pumped hydro projects around the state yesterday, Mr Frydenberg said a second $1 billion interconnector was the linchpin of the $5 billion Battery of the Nation concept.

“The Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, has stated publicly, and I’ve stated publicly, that we think a second interconnector is in the interests of Tasmania for your energy security,” he said.

Hydro Tasmania chief executive Steve Davy said that Hydro’s analysis had confirmed that the Battery of the Nation concept was cost effective even with the interconnection cost.

TasNetworks is presently undertaking a $20 million study of the interconnector.

Hydro Tasmania revealed yesterday that its pumped hydro possibilities would be cheaper to develop than the Snowy Hydro 2.0 scheme.

The proximity of projects to existing hydro dams helped cost and speed of construction which is estimated at between $1.05 million and $1.5 million per MW compared with Snowy Hydro’s total estimated cost of $40 billion or $1.8 million to $2.3 million per MW.

The sites identified by Hydro Tasmania are anticipated to supply an additional 2500 MW to the National Electricity Market as coal-fired power stations close.

Energy analyst Marc White said he would be interested to see the underlying assumptions of the vision.

“Our concern has always been: what are the benefits for the Tasmanian consumer,” he said.

Mr White said it was possible Tasmanians would end up bearing the cost of exports from Victorian wind farms if energy flowed to the state.

Opposition spokesman for Climate Change and Energy Mark Butler said the Turnbull Government was dominated by its right wing, which wanted to see a new coal-fired power station.

The Government claims the projects will provide thousands of jobs in Tasmania and billions of dollars of investment while securing the energy supply for other states.