Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO spruiks potential economic windfalls of renewable exports

Tasmania’s aspiration of generating 200 per cent of its electricity needs from renewable energy will “create a massive wave of economic opportunity that will rival the post-war hydro boom”, the head of the state’s business lobby says. DETAILS >

Tasmania’s aspiration of generating 200 per cent of its electricity needs from renewable energy will “create a massive wave of economic opportunity that will rival the post-war hydro boom”, the head of the state’s business lobby says.

The state government wants to meet the target by 2040, after becoming the first state to achieve 100 per cent renewable electricity generation three years ago.

Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO Michael Bailey has talked up what this could mean for business, spruiking the potential economic windfalls.

“We are one of the few places in the world that is completely powered by renewable energy and now we need to look at how we can export that to the world,” he said.

“Importantly, we need to seize the opportunity to leverage this competitive advantage to make Tasmania the best place in the country for manufacturing and especially advanced manufacturing.

Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO Michael Bailey.

“It will create jobs, support the community and leverage our clean, green renewable energy.”

According to Mr Bailey, the proposed $3b Marinus Link interconnector – set to be the biggest infrastructure project in the state’s history – will unlock ten years’ worth of civil construction works and “make Tasmania the hub of creativity and harness our talented youth and give them another reason to stay here”.

“This is Tasmania’s golden opportunity to bulletproof our economy and create a massive wave of economic opportunity that will rival the post-war hydro boom,” he said.

“This really is the biggest opportunity that Tasmania has ever seen. It’s a gold rush and we’re the place to be.”

Tasmanian Small Business Council CEO Robert Mallett encouraged local businesses to capitalise on the green energy boom and adopt more energy-efficient technologies and appliances.

Artist’s impression of the Marinus Link route from space.

Marinus Link route from space - artist's impression.

“Businesses that are now starting to take advantage of the grant opportunities by both state and federal governments should be able to lessen their carbon footprint by having their appliances upgraded – they’re cheaper to run and their business will make more money,” he said.

“The issue is that in such a highly competitive world, especially in the online world, as well, trying to get more for your product is nearly impossible. So the only way you can actually make more money is by making sure the input costs that are going into producing your product or selling your product are less.”

Marinus Link Undersea-HVDC-cable- Artist's impression before buried beneath Bass Strait sea floor.

The Tasmanian government has established an Energy Saver Loan Scheme, which provides no-interest loans for eligible homes, businesses and organisations to fund the purchase and installation of energy-efficient products.

The loans are interest-free, are worth between $500 and $10,000 and can be issued for terms of one to three years.

Professor Richard Eccleston, director of the university’s Tasmanian Policy Exchange, said consumers all over the world were making conscious choices “as all governments around the world and national governments are making commitments around reducing [emissions]”.

“Particularly multinational corporations and big companies are making decisions about changing products and processes,” he said.

“So we need to make sure that Tasmanian businesses that are in the export game or who are part of global operations are at the front of the queue in terms of thinking about those kinds of new technologies.

“And just at an international and national level, the Europeans are starting to develop taxes on products that have a high-carbon content. And there just won’t be markets for traditionally produced goods.”