International Monetary Fund downgrades expectations amid slowing world economy. All the day’s events, live
You can read more of Malcolm Turnbull’s to the Snowy 2.0 criticism response on his twitter feed.
You can argue the toss over whether or not he is right – again, he was invested in this project, and so he is not exactly impartial on this. But it would have been nice to see more of this Malcolm Turnbull – defending what he believes in and calling out vested interests – as prime minister.
<
p class=”block-time published-time”>
It was probably the project Malcolm Turnbull was most excited about when he was prime minister. Properly authentically excited.
So it is no surprise that Turnbull would come to the defence of Snowy 2.0 in the face of reports of cost blow outs, and questions over its use.
Snowy Hydro 2.0 is the key to making renewables reliable. It is opposed by vested interests in the energy sector who know it will reduce volatility and deliver zero emissions and more affordable electricity.
The decision to proceed with Snowy 2.0 has been based on extensive economic and engineering analysis including the feasibility study published in December 2017. The contracted costs, as Paul Broad has said, are consistent with that study.
The claim that the scheme is in the wrong place is ludicrous. Snowy Hydro sits between the two biggest centres of demand in NSW and Victoria. Of course transmission will have to be upgraded, as it will be right around the country as we move from high emission….
So if the Government does not build Snowy 2.0 it would not get built. In summary – the opponents of Snowy 2.0 are, wittingly or not, doing the work of vested interests in the energy sector who profit from the existing volatility and high prices.
Read More IMF slashes Australia's growth forecast to 1.7% – politics live