Thursday, 30 November 2023

 Lily D’AMBROSIO (Mill Park – Minister for Climate Action, Minister for Energy and Resources, Minister for the State Electricity Commission) (14:39): I rise to update the house on our big, big news about the big, big battery now being built by the SEC. This morning the Premier and I turned the first sod and began immediate construction on one of the biggest battery projects in the world, all thanks to the SEC. The SEC is partnering with Equis Australia to deliver the Melbourne renewable energy hub, with 1.6 gigawatt hours of renewable energy storage capacity. It will also store the surplus renewable energy from the grid, firming up supply – enough to power more than 200,000 homes. It will enable around 1.5 gigawatts of new renewable energy projects to be built because of the firming capacity that the battery will provide across three of Victoria’s six renewable energy zones. The project will also of course create 155 jobs, including 14 apprenticeships and traineeships. The project would not have happened today without the SEC, and that is a fact – that is a fact. Managing director of Equis David Russell said it himself this morning for the world to hear. He also said, and I quote:

The partnership … will result in more capacity being put into the system, which will drive down prices.

Because of the SEC, this project is happening sooner, it is bigger and it will support more renewables coming into the system. That means cheaper bills, because when surplus cheap renewable energy is stored in batteries, we can use that to avoid the reliance on expensive gas-fired electricity – because ultimately that is what consumers pay on their bills. It is as simple as that. Victorians voted for renewables, they voted to bring back the SEC and they also voted to get rid of the member for Hawthorn once. If he keeps this up, it might actually happen a second time or a third time. The SEC is well and truly back and for all Victorians, and that is what we have delivered today.