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I would like to join Tim and Peter in acknowledging the traditional owners of the land and the Nirranda community, and in welcoming you all here today.
And I thank the CO2CRC for the invitation to launch this very significant project.
Not only will this be Australia’s first carbon dioxide capture and storage demonstration plant.
It will be the world’s largest demonstration of deep geological storage.
The Australian Government recognises deepening concern about climate change and has committed to a 60 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 compared to 2000 levels.
There is no single solution to reducing our carbon footprint.
That’s why the Australian Government is supporting research and development of a range of options including renewables and gas, greater energy efficiency, demand management and, of course, carbon capture and storage.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) considers carbon capture and storage to be the second-most viable option to reduce CO2 emissions in the short to medium term behind improved energy efficiency.
With historic global economic growth accompanied by an insatiable thirst for energy, coal and fossil fuels will continue to provide a significant proportion of the world’s energy for the foreseeable future.
It is worth noting that Australia’s coal resources alone, assuming the advent of successful clean coal technologies, are so large that they could be significant in the global energy mix for several hundred years.
I hope this project will encourage community acceptance of CCS and its potential role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
While the Otway Basin Project will demonstrate the carbon storage aspect of CCS, the Australian Government is also supporting projects to demonstrate post combustion capture at coal-fired power stations.
These projects form part of our National Clean Coal Initiative.
This initiative will be underpinned by a $500 million Clean Coal Fund.
Together with $1 billion from the coal industry through COAL21, the fund will support total investment of $1.5 billion in the development and deployment of clean coal technologies.
In addition, we are currently preparing legislation to establish a framework to provide access and property rights for carbon dioxide injection and storage activities in Commonwealth offshore waters.
This will be world first legislation.
All these innovations put Australia at the leading edge of clean coal technology worldwide.
The $40 million CO2CRC Otway Project is just one example of Australia’s leadership in developing practical solutions to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The success of this program will confirm CCS technology as a viable option to reduce the carbon footprint of coal.
Coal is not only used to generate around 80 per cent of Australia’s electricity but it is also our largest single export commodity.
Therefore, the success of CCS is vital for the future of our coal industry.
It will be an important part of the solution to the environmental consequences of rapid economic growth in our region.
At the same time, it will protect our own economic future as a major coal user and exporter.
CCS has the advantage of being a near to medium term option.
The technology and the process of injecting and storing carbon dioxide is proven.
The Sleipner project in the North Sea has been injecting and storing large quantities of waste carbon dioxide since 1997 and oil companies have been injecting carbon dioxide to enhance recovery of oil and gas for a long time.
The Otway Basin Project – Australia’s first demonstration of carbon dioxide storage technology – is a tribute to the Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC).
The CO2CRC has helped put Australia at the forefront of international CCS research, development and deployment.
I am proud that my Department, through Geoscience Australia, has been involved in the CO2CRC’s research by assessing regional sites for geological storage and assisting in the selection of this site for the storage demonstration project.
The CO2CRC and the Otway Basin Project is an excellent example of Australian innovation and of all levels of government working in partnership with industry and research organisations to find ways of addressing the climate change challenge.
I know from my own conversation with industry that it values the CO2CRC and is assisting with plans for future CCS demonstration activities.
The Otway Project has also provided new business opportunities for small-to- medium enterprises including The Process Group and CanSyd – both of whom are represented here today.
The Australian Government has committed more than $28 million over the next three years to enable the CO2CRC to continue its good work in Australia and overseas.
The knowledge and expertise gained from conducting this project will be shared internationally through forums such as the Asia Pacific Partnership and the International Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum.
Including the pioneering design and implementation of the world’s most comprehensive carbon dioxide storage monitoring program.
Through this monitoring program, the Otway Basin Project will play an important role in demonstrating the safety of this technology to communities, industry and governments worldwide.
Without community acceptance and confidence in CCS technology, we will not be able to move forward.
Mindful of that very important point, I will open the valve at the injection well and start the carbon dioxide flowing.
In closing, let me say again the Otway Basin Project is a vital step towards establishing carbon capture and storage in Australia – and I congratulate all the participants for bringing us one step closer to this reality.
Thank you.