Economic benefits in clean coal
THE Turnbull Government’s plan to prioritise reliability and affordability through a National Energy Guarantee provides a ready platform for a new high efficiency low emission ( HELE) power station in North Queensland.
The coming days and weeks will be dominated by green interest groups howling at the end of their free ride of renewable subsidies that were being passed on to households and businesses in the form of higher power bills.
The Australian Power Project has consistently called for a balanced and sustainable approach to achieving a clean energy future.
It is crucial that Australia embraces a national energy policy that sets out a clear pathway to meeting our commitments to the Paris Agreement, but at the same time promotes economic growth, more jobs and allows us to leverage our resource advantage as one of the world’s largest coal exporters.
But as part of this equation we can see that what’s missing in the North right now is new baseload generation.
While it is true a new HELE power station will deliver lower power prices for the region, as families and businesses would no longer be forced to pay the transmission costs from generators down south, I believe the bigger opportunity lies in unlocking North Queensland’s tential.
As states such as South Australia and Victoria continue a blind pursuit of unrealistic renewable energy targets, manufacturing and industry leaders in those states will be looking to other markets to source cheap and reliable power.
When power prices continue to rise because of a flooding of renewables, businesses will have two options – move to another state or move operations offshore.
If North Queensland can promote itself as a region with the lowest power prices in the country it can attract jobs and investment from other parts of Australia that might otherwise shift offshore.
The benefit of that new investment and growth extends well beyond the immediate price relief and competition to Ergon that a new HELE power station would deliver.
For too long unfairly bidded out of the market by heavily subsidised renewables, and now with gas prices at all- time highs, HELE coal- fired power stations are emerging as one of the only sources of cheap and reliable baseload electricity for families and industry.
Rather than be an afterthought in the state’s energy market with only a single provider and no competition to Ergon, the opportunity is there for North Queensland to be the leader in cheap and reliable power with a new HELE power station.
• Nathan Vass is Founder of the Australian Power Project, a leading advocacy group calling for a balanced and sustainable approach to achieving a clean energy future. economic po-