The coalition will not say how much nuclear energy its plan will generate until after the elections

The coalition cannot say how much nuclear power it plans to produce, its energy spokesman says.

The amount of energy is one of many details the opposition did not provide on Wednesday, stating that it wants to build seven nuclear power plants in five states between 2035 and 2050. Other details include cost and exact schedule.

But businesses and experts say data on power generation is essential for energy investors to understand the mix of nuclear, renewables and gas the Coalition is proposing for Australia and plan their investments accordingly.

Energy spokesman Ted O’Brien, who designed the plan, told ABC Insiders that the amount of energy produced would depend on the type and number of reactors built at each site and that neither of these things would be known until the coalition government established an expert agency nuclear, which will undertake research.

“We would leave this issue to the nuclear coordinating body,” he said.

“This independent body is to determine the feasibility of certain technologies in each location, and only then can a specific number of gigawatts be determined.”

This is unlikely to satisfy the concerns of industry groups, who point to Labour’s annually updated Integrated System Plan, which sets out the proposed energy mix in gigawatts.

Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox said this was important for investor “confidence” and confidence.

However, O’Brien said that gigawatts are “very specific” and that the Coalition will instead present its “assumptions” and provide general data on “how big we think they will be in 2050.”

“I’m a liberal and I appreciate and respect investors’ desire to make money, but to be really clear, our focus is on Australians who want to save money,” he said.

O’Brien also revealed that the Coalition plans to have multiple reactors in some locations, which will increase the amount of energy produced.

Expert estimates put the amount of power that could be generated at the seven nuclear power plants at about 10 gigawatts, which is less than 4 percent of Australia’s energy needs.

Mixed signals on renewable energy sources

The proposed contribution of nuclear energy also has implications for the state of implementation of renewable energy sources and the extent to which the Coalition will seek its continuation in government.

National leader David Littleproud has consistently presented nuclear policy as an alternative to renewables and has even suggested introducing a “cap” on renewable energy.

However, O’Brien said on Sunday that this is not the Coalition’s policy and the Coalition “is united around the idea of a net-zero energy grid by 2050.”

O’Brien added that he did not believe renewable energy could be used as Australia’s primary energy source, describing the government’s 85% renewable energy target as unrealistic.

Asked what the Coalition would do in the face of a looming short-term energy shortage, given that 90 percent of coal-fired power is expected to leave the national electricity market over the next decade and before the first proposed nuclear power plant is built, O’Brien said the answer was to “put more gas in to the market”, but also announced that it would “welcome all renewable energy sources”.

“The government believes that the goal of the game is to maximize the amount of renewable energy sources. We want the optimal amount.”

The government supports renewables through its Capacity Investment Scheme, under which it insures approved renewable energy projects to provide investors with an “income safety net”. The Coalition’s plans for this program in government are unclear, but O’Brien promised renewables and gas projects will follow soon.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said the Coalition’s plan threatens the progress of renewable energy sources in the short term.

“There will be no nuclear power plant for at least ten years. “Australians now want relief on their energy bills,” she told Sky News on Sunday.

“We see renewables entering our energy market, driving down energy costs. This is already happening, and instead Peter Dutton has a plan, the cost of which he will not disclose, that may help in a decade.

“We could be a superpower in renewable energy and instead Peter Dutton wants to put the brakes on, instead of leading the world in renewable energy, he wants to put us in a slower lane. It’s just crazy.”

John Grimes, chief executive of the Smart Energy Council, said the Coalition’s policies were a “spoke in the wheel of progress” and were actively undermining renewables.

On Sunday morning, Littleproud reiterated that the clear intention of nuclear policy is to limit renewable energy sources.

“It’s just math,” he told Sky News, saying there would be fewer transmission lines and less “destruction of prime farmland” under the Coalition.

National Party leader David Littleproud said nuclear policy would mean fewer renewable energy projects.(ABC News: Mick Tsikas)

While the Coalition has not yet released costs, Littleproud said construction costs are “approximate” at $8 billion per unit.

Asked about the higher costs of nuclear power, which most expert analyzes suggest, he said the government would “control” the plants and could operate them in a way that would “lower costs.”

O’Brien also signaled a “market reform” plan to lower prices, but did not elaborate on it.

Two years of public consultation to ‘make sure they understand’

Both Littleproud and O’Brien said two-and-a-half years of community consultation would be needed before location details could be finalized, but communities would not have the power to veto it.

“It’s not international best practice,” O’Brien said.

“We are taking it to the Australian people, we are seeking a mandate.”

He added that he doesn’t expect communities to oppose the plants.

Littleproud said he planned to “take Australians on a journey… (we would) begin a two-and-a-half-year consultation process with these communities to make sure they understand”.

Sent 4 hours agoSunday, June 23, 2024 at 12:56 pm, updated 3 hours agoSunday, June 23, 2024 at 1:53 am