TRUenergy's announcement today that it is seeking to invest in two new gas fired power stations in Queensland is a welcome step towards meeting Australia's energy needs through lower emissions generation.
We know that policy certainty is absolutely fundamental to bringing on the critical large-scale and capital intensive investments required in our electricity generation sector.
Through the introduction of a carbon price the Government is providing the policy framework to enable private sector investment to occur in our energy sector as we move to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The Government's approach has consistently been to encourage commercial decisions regarding new investments in response to market signals – and a price on carbon is a key signal in this regard.
Today's announcement is a positive indication that business is responding to the Government's action.
TRUenergy's proposal is targeted at two key growth areas, with new gas fired electricity generators proposed for Ipswich to meet South East Queensland load, and Gladstone to meet growing industrial load.
The Gladstone proposal is particularly important in providing reliable electricity to support economic development as well as underpinning industrial growth and the creation of jobs.
These proposed investments will help meet Queensland’s electricity demand, which the Australian Energy Market Operator forecasts to grow by 4.1% per annum over the next ten years.
The power stations, each initially proposed to be 500 megawatts, and scalable up to 1,500 megawatts each, could represent a total investment of $3.6 billion.
This is the type of investment we need to provide energy security and reduce the emissions intensity of our electricity generation sector.
Earlier this year the Investment Reference Group reported to Government and identified a need for $240 billion to be spent in our energy sector between now and 2030.
When dealing with such long lived capital intensive investment we must have an investment environment that provides certainty, and that is what the Government is delivering, despite the Coalition's actions, which are undermining investor confidence.