Member for Mallee Dr Anne Webster says a 71 per cent blowout in the EnergyConnect transmission project cost just north of Mallee demonstrate that Labor’s 28,000 kilometres of transmission lines will cost Australians even more than existing eye-watering estimates.

“The Coalition demonstrated late last year that our energy transition will cost 44 per cent less than Labor’s plans. The Albanese Government’s scheme includes 900 kilometres of the NSW-SA interconnector transmission lines which will now cost $1.5 billion more than expected,” Dr Webster said.

Dr Webster has been a vocal opponent of VicGrid’s 240 kilometres of VNI West 500 kilovolt transmission line – running exclusively through the Mallee electorate -  linking Victoria to EnergyConnect in New South Wales, saying the government-run proponent has grossly mishandled social licence.

“Little wonder that regional Australians have worked the Albanese Labor Government out and believe Captain Albanese is taking our ship of state onto the reef of economic ruin – not to mention destroying our pristine rural landscapes with up to 80-metre-high transmission towers and up to 280-metre-high wind turbines,” Dr Webster said.

“It gets worse – Prime Minister Albanese and Energy Minister Bowen are hell-bent on an 82 per cent renewables target for our electricity system in less than 5 years, even though our carbon dioxide emissions are already 28 per cent below 2005 levels - despite the fastest population growth in the developed world,” Dr Webster said

“By contrast, the big emitters are hitting the brakes:

·         China’s emissions are double their 2005 levels

·         India is only aiming for 50 per cent by 2030 and is rapidly expanding their number of coal-fired power plants

·         the USA was at a mere 21 per cent by 2020 and on his first day re-elected as President, Mr Trump withdrew from the Paris Climate Accord, and

·         the European Union’s binding renewables target is only 42.5 per cent by 2030.”

“Australian energy bills have risen 32 per cent before Government rebates, $1,000 higher than the Prime Minister promised. Transgrid’s unsurprising EnergyConnect blowout may find its way through to consumers’ bills in full, or in part, as a cost pass-through in the coming years,” Dr Webster said.

Energy Users Association of Australia CEO Andrew Richards told AFR:

“The net benefits of (EnergyConnect) for consumers were already reasonably thin. You’d have to think now, with the capex going out to where it is, that they’re not thin, they’re anaemic. The only guarantee that we have as consumers is that we’re going to pay more.”

Recent Clean Energy Council data shows Labor is running at less than half pace to its 82 per cent  renewables target, needing to install 7 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity every year - and yet over the past two years just 5.6 GW has reached financial close. 

“Ironically, carbon dioxide emissions are in fact higher now than when Labor took office”, Dr Webster said.

“Only the Coalition will deliver a plan that provides cheap, clean and consistent 24/7 energy—without the cost blowouts and broken promises that continue to define Labor’s all-eggs-in-one basket approach to energy,” Dr Webster said.

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