ABC Regional Victoria Statewide Drive with Prue Bentley · 31 Mar 2025, 4:07 PM to 4:16 PM

Bentley

Now, if you are in the path of a proposed transmission line, please keep listening because there is, as we know, a lot of angst in communities and a lot of confusion about the need or otherwise for this type of infrastructure. On Friday, we heard National Senator Bridget McKenzie all but confirming that new transmission lines wouldn't be needed. Those are her words under the Coalition's Nuclear power plan:

McKenzie

I'm going to be really clear. We want more gas into our energy grid sooner, which means opening up more supply.  

Epstein

So you're not going to build them?  

McKenzie

Which means you will not need the additional transmission lines.

Bentley  

She didn't say they wouldn't be built, rather that they wouldn't be needed. But there is a lot of confusion in the community about this stance. Let's see if we can clear it up. Dr Anne Webster is the Nationals member for Mallee. Good afternoon and thank you for joining us.  

Webster

G'day Prue, how are you?  

Bentley

I'm very well.  Did Bridget McKenzie misspeak on coalition transmission line policy?  

Webster

Look, the reason that I had the Kanya event, I'll call it last Friday, with 270 farmers with the state and federal shadow ministers for energy present at O'Brien and David Davis was precisely to do that. It was my hope that they would, as the shadow ministers, be able to say what the coalition is absolutely going to do. The reality is that Peter Dutton has said that he will kill the $20 billion ‘rewiring the nation’ plan. That is great news. It was the first question - I asked as well - will VNI West not be built? The problem is that in shadow portfolios, such as that Ted and David both have, is that there is a great deal of secrecy on behalf of both governments about what has already been committed. So, we don't know where the contracts have already been done. Our intention is to pull back from the infrastructure, the 28,000 kilometres of infrastructure, but at what point will it be - should the coalition gain government in May, and should the coalition in Victoria gain government in November next year - so you know it's one of those ‘we don't have the complete picture’. We have the intent.  

As Bridget rightly said, we want to build on gas. We want to go to nuclear and we want to keep coal going longer in order to maintain a reliable and affordable, key word there, affordable energy grid because people are hurting badly under the current cost of living crisis.  

Bentley

Dr Webster, can I just dive in there just a little bit because the energy, the transmission grid that we have at the moment, are you saying that is, as it stands, all we need for our future energy needs across the state or across the country, given that the AEMO has said our demand for electricity is going to triple by 2060.  

Webster

So, the shadow ministers are the ones that I would encourage you to have a conversation with about that. It is absolutely going to depend on what kind of energy market we have. If we are all-renewable, which is Labor's plan, then, you know, who knows how many thousands of kilometres. At the moment ...  

Bentley

... But there could be need for new transmission lines, couldn't there?  

Webster

... I can't answer that. The reality is we have transmission lines, for example, through Gippsland that potentially can be upgraded. There are other projects that are underground that I'm hearing about this last week. This is a very flexible pot that we're dealing with and it is absolutely driven at the moment by Labor's unachievable goals and hence what our farming communities are upset about are all the cowboys out there with their proposals for wind turbines. And just to give your listeners an understanding, at the moment we have 288 operational wind turbines in Mallee. The aim or the pipeline, if you like, is over 1,000. So, you know, significantly more. They need to be hooked in, in some way. If this plan, if the Labor-Greens-Teals plan is continuing after the election, it is inevitable that all those transmission lines will be needed.  

It won't be, under the Coalition.  

Bentley

AEMO though, says that even with the Coalition's step change scenario, which I admit is difficult to know what we're talking about here, but this is the - apart from the progressive scenario approach to energy - this is an approach that assumes a slower transition to renewables. Even under that scenario, AEMO says that we will need 6,500 kilometres of new transmission lines across the country. Some of that will have to be in Victoria. So are you promising no new transmission, full stop?  

Webster

I would go back to what the shadow minister himself said to to the 270 farmers in the room, which was that he is not in a position to be able to confirm that VNI or other transmissions lines won't be required because we don't have the information. It would be blind guessing.  

In opposition, you do not have all of the data about, about, as I said earlier, the contracts that are already in place, what is already committed, you know, how much equipment, for example, has already been purchased and is on its way. We don't know. And so, all of that needs to be ascertained and there needs to be transparency, which we are not not seeing from the Labor government. David Davis actually said that he can't obtain information, even under freedom of information, from the Victorian government. I mean, that's pretty disgraceful.  

Bentley

So on that basis, did Bridget McKenzie misspeak about coalition policy on transmission lines?  

Webster

Look, I didn't hear what Bridget had to say. I've only heard what you have told me now. But the thing is that this is, and I think your listeners would have exactly the same view from me that I'm not able to say yes or no because I can't.  

Bentley

She appeared though to be saying that the coalition policy would be for no new transmission lines and that flies in the face of what you've just told us.  

Webster

Well, I don't think so. I think that there will absolutely, certainly, be less transmission lines like the VNI West under a coalition government.  

Bentley

Less is not none though, is it?  

Webster

Well, I'm not saying that. I think what we can say is that less transmission lines will absolutely be required under our energy plan, and we will have viable manufacturing and industry bases and always on 24-7 power and, you know, eventually a future zero-emissions nuclear energy. So, we have a vastly different approach than the Labor governments, both at federal and state level.

Bentley

Dr Webster, thank you so much for your time today.  

Webster

You're welcome.  

Bentley

Dr Anne Webster is the Nationals member for Mallee.

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