Tasmania is entering an ‘energy crisis’ made worse by Marinus Link uncertainty, TCCI says
The Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry says that the state is entering a generation crisis as demand outstrips supply. The state government counters that high demand is a sign of a strong economy.
Tasmania
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Tasmania is in the middle of an energy crisis due to a lack of new electricity generating capacity that would be worsened by the cancellation of the Marinus Link interconnector project, business and Labor say.
The state government says that high demand for energy was a sign of a booming economy.
Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Michael Bailey said the state “was in huge trouble” as rising demand from industry and consumers outstripped supply.
“We’re in the middle of an energy crisis in Tasmania,” he said.
“This has been looming for a number of years and the TCCI has been calling for a focus on energy generation and Marinus now for the last five years for Tasmania.
“It’s important Tasmanians know that we do not have enough energy in Tasmania for our needs.
“We know that major industries are struggling to get enough energy for projects that they desperately need and we know that increasingly, Tasmanians will struggle to have enough energy for the things that they need.”
Mr Bailey said a lack of power would hold back the state’s economic growth.
Labor’s Dean Winter said billions of dollars of development were at risk in an “energy nightmare” for Tasmania.
He said Tasmanians were paying too much for power, industry was being held back and renewables projects were being left on the drawing board by red tape.
“For the next 12 months, it’s forecast that Tasmania’s economy will actually shrink rather than grow,” he said.
“One of the reasons for that is that there isn’t enough power for new projects, particularly for our major industrials, we’re hearing from not just one but from several major industrials who are saying that they want to grow their business, they want to create jobs, they want to they want to build new projects, but they’re being told by the generators and energy companies, that there isn’t enough power for them.”
Premier Jeremy Rockliff said high demand for energy was a healthy sign of a growing economy.
“We are growing, therefore we need better energy capacity. That is no secret at this point,” he said.
“You have a growing economy and you want the economy to continue to grow and jobs to be created.”
The Premier said that was the reason his government was so firmly behind Marinus Link.
In parliament on Wednesday, Mr Rockliff accused Labor of causing alarm by distributing what he described as “fake power bills” to households.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff produced one of the letters bearing his likeness in parliament on Wednesday.
“This is gutless propaganda you need to take a good hard look at yourselves scaring vulnerable Tasmanians,” he said.
“Vulnerable Tasmanians thought they owed large power bills. You didn’t think about that much at all did you … you’ve circulated a fake bill.”
Mr Winter said it was people’s actual power bills that were causing the greatest distress.
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