Former Brisbane lord mayor testifies in court – and brings a prop

Labor heavyweight and former chair of CS Energy Jim Soorley has denied misleading the Queensland government about maintenance issues before a power station exploded in 2021.

The former Brisbane lord mayor testified in the Federal Court on Thursday about management of the state-owned power corporation in the period until he resigned in mid-2023.

Once he was sitting in the witness box, the 73-year-old held a piece of paper near his forehead that read “Privilege,” which was in reference to him needing to say the word with every answer to avoid self-incrimination.

Former Brisbane lord mayor Jim Soorley has given evidence in a Federal Court hearing over his time as chairman of CS Energy.Credit: Cloe Read

Under questioning, Soorley appeared curt at times. Asked whether he had read the report that detailed CS Energy’s failings, he replied: “Nope.”

“I left the business and I had other things to do, and I didn’t know I was going to be dragged here,” Soorley answered.

“And even when I knew I was being dragged here, I made a conscious decision not to read it.”

Outside court, Soorley denied claims by Energy Minister Mick de Brenni that Soorley had given “incorrect advice” about maintenance to the minister in the aftermath of the explosion.

Earlier this year, de Brenni said Soorley and CS Energy chief executive Andrew Bills had told him repeatedly that everything that needed to be done at Callide had been done.

Asked by journalists whether he believed the explosion at Callide C could have been prevented, Soorley replied: “Accidents happen.”

The explosion caused instability in the grid, and resulted in hundreds of thousands of properties losing power.

Soorley, at times, appeared snippy under a barrage of questions in court. He denied being aware of the findings of the independent review by forensic engineer Sean Brady, who found CS Energy failed to implement process safety practices, and said he had not been interviewed for the report.

The report detailed how a safety manager had, in 2019, warned of an “unsafe work environment”, saying overhaul dates had been pushed out and there were budget restrictions. The manager had warned her superiors that Callide was on a “path for catastrophic risk”, and later resigned.

But Soorley told the court he had only become aware of the former manager’s claims because of media reports. He said the matters she raised in her exit review were “operational”, and therefore not needing to be brought to his attention.

When questions concluded in court, Soorley exclaimed: “Oh my goodness, I’ve got the rest of the day.”

The case continues.

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