Antinuclear

$Billions of investment money at risk, as New South Wales Liberal government calls for scrapping of renewable energy target

Investment fears over ‘attack’ on green energy  SMH Anna Patty April 14, 2012 THE NSW government’s decision to withdraw support from clean energy schemes was criticised yesterday as a retrograde step that would threaten billions of investment dollars.
The Energy Minister, Chris Hartcher, has said the government would not be supporting green schemes that require a subsidy and is calling for the closure of the federal government’s renewable energy target. He called for the closure of the renewable energy target – legislation that is supported by the federal opposition.

The NSW opposition spokesman for energy, Luke Foley, said yesterday the tribunal’s determination found that green energy schemes had not contributed to electricity price increases. Power bills are forecast to rise between $182 and $338 a year from July 1. Mr Foley said the state government had ended bipartisan support for the 20 per cent renewable energy target after calling for the target to be removed, despite adopting the target in its state plan released
last year. ”The O’Farrell government has launched a relentless attack on renewable energy, with chilling investment signals sent by the government throughout its first year in office,” he said.

”Solar in NSW has been stopped dead in its tracks. The draft wind guidelines are designed to chronically handicap the expansion of the wind industry.
”Renewable energy is already contributing to lower wholesale electricity prices. The Australian Energy Market Commission recently reported that new wind energy projects in Victoria will mean that increases to wholesale electricity prices in that state will be lower than in NSW. Rather than attacking wind farms, the O’Farrell
government should require its own planning review to come up with a sensible and workable planning regime for the development of the wind industry in NSW.”
The acting chief executive of the Clean Energy Council, Kane Thornton, said it was a “worrying sign that the NSW government would seek the removal of one of Australia’s most significant energy policies without considering the impact this would have on investors who have put billions of dollars into clean energy projects in NSW. The renewable
energy target is scheduled to run until 2030 and these projects would face collapse if it was removed.”
http://www.smh.com.au/environment/investment-fears-over-attack-on-green-energy-20120413-1wysv.html#ixzz1s3udpo35

April 14, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | New South Wales, politics