NSW Premier Chris Minns won’t rule out the potential of more renewable energy projects for the Riverina. Photo: Jarryd Rowley.
NSW Premier Chris Minns refuses to rule out more renewable energy projects in the Riverina, despite consistent protests from the region’s farmers.
Farmers from across the region have expressed a united and directed response against renewable energy projects being built in the Riverina.
During the Daily Telegraph’s Wagga Bush Summit, held at Charles Sturt University, Mr Minns and several other State MPs met with groups of farmers calling for an end to renewable energy projects.
When questioned by local media a day after the event about the growing number of renewable energy projects, Mr Minns said he couldn’t stop the state’s move towards cleaner energy.
“If the question is, what are we doing to stop it? I can’t stop the renewable energy change to NSW,” he said.
“The reason is that I’ve got to generate with private partners and the Federal Government and whoever else, 12 gigawatts of energy, which is the largest amount of alternative energy produced in the shortest period of time in the state’s history.
“If we get it wrong and that rollout slows down, then two things will happen. Reliability will be a massive issue for industry and households and as high as the prices are today for energy, they’ll increase even higher than that.
“Then there are tens of thousands of jobs that are on the line.”
Mr Minns was asked why there had been a growing number of renewable energy projects being built outside of designated Renewable Energy Zones (REZ), which include the Southwest Renewable Energy Zone that stretches from Hay to Wentworth and the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone in and around Dubbo.
Despite sitting out of the Southwest Renewable Energy Zone, the Riverina is currently involved in several projects, including windfarms in Yanco, Griffith, Cootamundra and Yerong Creek, as well as the announcement of a battery storage site at Darlington Point.
Mr Minns responded by stating that projects were not required to be built exclusively in REZs.
“The renewable energy zones are sort of a reverse auction,” he said.
“The Government says we’ll build the transmission lines and in effect, the best price will come in on that [REZ] site. But if there’s another site that doesn’t have access to in this instance, Transgrid’s transmission lines, then it’s assessed.
“We want to make sure that when those private projects are up and running, that they’ve met all the criteria and regulations that any other development has in the state.
“It’s just it’s more heavily incentivised and better economics if you are in a renewable energy zone, because you’ve effectively got direct access to transmission lines.”
