Wednesday, 8 June 2022

Environment and Planning Committee

Inquiry into Renewable Energy in Victoria

Ms TAYLOR (Southern Metropolitan) (17:33): I am very happy to reflect on the renewable energy inquiry and the report that was recently handed down. I did attend a number of the hearings. I will concede that I did move on to another inquiry so was not involved in the writing of the report, but I commend all those who contributed to the report.

Having said that, I thought it would be nice to reflect on the report in any case. And what really came through to me, and there were many aspects to this comprehensive inquiry, was just how far our government has come in a very short space of time in terms of driving the transition to renewables. If we go back to 30 May 2013, I will give you one of the headlines under the Baillieu government ‘Welcome to Victoria, no wind farms allowed’:

The Australian state of Victoria is now one of the most difficult places in the world to build a wind farm.

I am very happy to say that our government did not rest on its laurels. It took action immediately when it came in to invest in clean energy, noting that this was really a game changer. No government in Victoria’s history has done more to bring online clean energy than the Andrews Labor government. And this has never been more urgent, because the simple reality is that right now we have about 20 per cent of our coal generation offline. This is simply a reflection of the fact that our coal generators are getting old and less reliable, which is why the Andrews Labor government has worked so hard to bring on line new sources of renewable generation.

Members interjecting.

Ms TAYLOR: That’s right, oppose renewables. Oppose, oppose, oppose—that is all we hear from those opposite. The key is to keep investing in new renewable energy and bringing on line new projects. Since we were elected—get this—55 projects providing 3991 megawatts of new capacity have come on line and are providing clean energy to the grid; and five renewable energy projects, which will provide 502 megawatts of capacity, are also under construction. These are driving down energy prices now by providing low-cost, clean, renewable energy. We have run the largest reverse auction in Australia’s history, and we are running another auction to bring on line at least—get this—600 megawatts of new renewable energy to power the entire government’s operations. We have set ambitious targets to bring on line offshore wind—2 gigawatts by 2032, 4 gigawatts by 2035 and 9 gigawatts by 2040. Those opposite: hey, are you listening? This game-changing technology will create tens of thousands of jobs—get that—because that is what Labor governments do. We drive clean energy; we drive jobs. This is a vital source of new renewable energy.

We are also making sure that every Victorian household can take part in the renewables revolution, with over 200 000 households installing solar, thanks to our Solar Homes program. These households would simply have missed out if it was not for our program. We have built the biggest battery in the Southern Hemisphere with the Victorian Big Battery in Moorabool, and we are installing neighbourhood batteries across Victoria. Did you hear—actually I think it was Ms Watt who spoke very recently—about the wonderful new community battery being opened in North Fitzroy, right in the community, because that is what Victorians want? This will soak up solar power and make it available in the evenings when we need it most. We are also helping households reduce their bills with energy efficiency, and this reduces their gas usage as well. Our highly successful Victorian energy upgrades program is ensuring that every household can take advantage of lower bills.

So you can see that we are really driving the renewable energy revolution. Why? We want to put downward pressure on our power bills. That makes good common sense. Victorians get that. That is why there was such a fabulous uptake of the solar rebate program. And the Solar Homes program is continuing because Victorians want it. They said yes, we said yes. We are working together with them on the community battery and Victoria’s biggest battery. What is not to love? We are doing it—action, action, action.