South Australian taxpayers have forked out nearly $300,000 on overseas trips related to hydrogen and mining

SA taxpayers have footed an eye-watering bill for overseas trips related to hydrogen and mining – including more than $30,000 to send one executive overseas for eight days.

South Australian taxpayers have forked out nearly $300,000 on overseas trips related to hydrogen and mining – including a bill of more than $30,000 to send one executive overseas for eight days.

Opposition energy and net zero spokesman Stephen Patterson said South Australians would be questioning whether the overseas trips were a waste of money.

Liberal analysis showed that, over 12 trips since Labor took office, the Department for Energy and Mining and minister Tom Koutsantonis racked up a $287,627 bill.

Mr Koutsantonis travelled to Rome, Madrid, Japan and South Korea at a cost of $72,640 – but disclosures for a trip to Italy are yet to be made.

In March, $30,759 was spent on an eight-day trip for the department’s chief executive to attend a conference in Toronto, Canada.

Mr Patterson said the government should prioritise electricity affordability and reliability instead of “hydrogen holidays”.

“We are in a cost of living crisis and South Australians are paying some of the highest power prices in the world and those skyrocketing bills are showing no signs of coming down,” he said.

Tom Koutsantonis and Peter Malinauskas in Japan in October 2022. Picture: Facebook

“So, it beggars belief that Labor would make taxpayers fork out for overseas trips to talk about their experimental hydrogen power plant – a facility that they themselves admit won’t lower household energy bills by a single cent.

“What value can South Australians show for Labor’s 12 trips worth almost $300,000? How much can South Australians say their electricity bills have dropped by after the hydrogen summit?”

But Mr Koutsantonis said “the hypocrisy from Stephen Patterson is off the charts”.

“He criticises hydrogen as an experiment, yet he’s spruiked it at international forums such as the Asia Pacific Hydrogen Summit,” he said.

“He’s critical of government ministers and departments attending these forums, but he’s had no qualms about fronting up himself.”

Mr Koutsantonis said the Hydrogen Jobs Plan would lower power prices for industrial users, which will in turn benefit all South Australian households.

He said the investments have the potential to generate billions in economic activity and create thousands of jobs.

“But all of this requires international investment,” he said.

“We are at the global vanguard of the hydrogen future – is the opposition seriously suggesting we should keep our plans to ourselves?

“The fact is, the costs of these multi-agency delegations attending these major forums is minuscule compared to the potential investment and knowledge that can be gleaned from them.”