Renewables and nuclear are companions, not competitors | Peter Dutton

Only a delusional government believes that you can run an economy using part-time and unreliable power, writes Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.

The time for nuclear energy in Australia has come.

It is a bold and visionary policy – one that moves beyond political short-termism – and will set this country up for generations.

The fact is we are on an energy policy trainwreck under this government.

In SA, they are restarting mothballed diesel generators. In Qld, the hydro projects have blown out by billions.

In Victoria, they have literally banned gas from homes while relying on extending the life of coal-fired power stations, and in NSW, we were warned last week not to use dishwashers and washing machines because of the fragility of the grid on a warm day.

We are paying some of the highest electricity prices in the world under federal Labor’s renewables-only policy.

This is not what we should expect in a first-world country.

More than 400 nuclear reactors operate worldwide today. More than 30 countries use nuclear power. Dozens more are looking to join the growing league of nuclear-powered nations. And yet, ignoring reality and embracing their renewables-only fantasy, Mr Albanese and Mr Bowen are positioning Australia as a pariah.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton addresses a CEDA lunch on his nuclear policy in September. Picture: NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

Only a delusional government believes that you can run a full-time and functioning economy using part-time and unreliable power.

We need a balanced energy mix with renewables backed by stable baseload power to underpin a strong economy – and it is precisely why major countries like the US, UK, France, Japan and Canada are expanding their investments in nuclear energy. Australia is the outlier here.

The Coalition, like other countries, sees renewables and nuclear as companions – not competitors, as Labor does.

The fact is, if we want heavy industry in this country and if we are to meet the growing energy demands from electrification, automation, artificial intelligence and energy-intensive data centres, our country needs 24/7, affordable, and reliable baseload generation. That's what nuclear will do.

We have to think big and do what’s right for our country. The time for nuclear is now.

Plainly, the Government doesn’t hold safety concerns about nuclear energy, because they’ve signed up to AUKUS and nuclear submarines. The government can’t say they have issues in relation to the disposal of nuclear waste because, under AUKUS, the government has signed up to disposing the end-of-life reactors.

The Coalition’s plan is to place the latest nuclear technologies in seven locations on the sites of retiring coal-fired power stations. There’s no need to carpet our prime agricultural land, national parks and coastlines with industrial-scale solar and wind farms – or the 28,000 kilometres of new transmission lines needed to make them work.

With nuclear power, we can maximise the highest yield of energy per square metre of environmental impact and minimise environmental damage.

The cost of nuclear plants can be spread over a reactor’s 80-year lifespan, whereas under Labor’s renewables-only plan, every solar panel and wind turbine will need to be replaced three-to-four times over the same period.

Mr Albanese and Mr Bowen are engaging in one of the most scandalous con jobs ever attempted on the Australian people. Independent economic modelling shows their plan will cost five times more than what they’re telling Australians. And that $642 billion price tag will be passed on to Australians in their power bills.

I believe, in time, state premiers like Peter Malinauskas and Chris Minns – the adults in the room when it comes to the Labor Party – will support nuclear energy because it’s zero emissions technology and it’s the only way we’re going to shore-up renewables and get to net zero by 2050. That’s the best thing that we can do for our environment, for our economy, and for our country.

If Mr Albanese believes in cheap, clean and consistent power, he should do the right thing by our country and get on board with nuclear power.

Peter Dutton is the federal Opposition Leader.

Originally published as Renewables and nuclear are companions, not competitors | Peter Dutton