Gippsland › Latest news › Darren Chester MP

Future energy mix: Gippslanders support nuclear power alongside renewables for reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy

Gippslanders are eager to learn about nuclear energy, advocating for a balanced mix of nuclear and renewables to ensure reliable, affordable energy, while respecting local communities and driving regional investment and jobs.

By news@gippsland - 20th November 2024 - Back to News

The vast majority of Gippslanders who have contacted my office are keen to learn more about nuclear technology, and there is a high level of energy literacy in our region. Generally speaking, local people understand the energy trifecta of having a reliable and affordable energy system while meeting our environmental commitments as part of international agreements.

Locals understand the need for reliable, affordable energy and environmental commitments, with complex planning required as coal stations retire

Balanced energy discussion

Our energy system on the East Coast is extremely complex and relies heavily on existing coal-fired power stations. As these stations retire, the challenge of meeting the increased demand with replacement forms of energy generation will require huge financial investments and careful planning based on science and engineering, not politics.

Australians are interested in a facts-based discussion, not another scare campaign. There's no comparable country in the world that is moving to a 100% weather-dependent system of energy generation because there are days when the wind doesn't blow and the sun doesn't shine.

As a member of the House of Representatives Select Committee on Nuclear Energy, I have been hearing from experts in Australia and internationally that we need to be adopting a more balanced approach to meet our future energy needs.

Nuclear transition benefits

A mix of zero-emissions nuclear technology and large-scale renewables is the preferred approach around the world to managing the transition away from fossil fuels over the next 25 years. Including nuclear energy in our future energy mix will dramatically reduce the footprint of large-scale wind, solar and storage facilities on rural land and reduce the need for new transmission lines.

Firming of solar and wind energy sources means there is less need to over-build capacity, and the entire system can operate at a cheaper average cost to consumers. The Select Committee was told in hearings this week by two of the United States leading experts (Professor Jacobo Buongiorno and Professor Andrew Whittaker) that re-purposing redundant coal-fired power station sites is the 'ideal' approach to developing nuclear energy in Australia.

The witnesses made it clear that Australia already has the capacity to build a large portion of the infrastructure needed to house a nuclear facility, and the engineering was well advanced to overcome seismic activity and other major events throughout the world.

Balanced energy future

Re-using existing transmission lines was recognised as a cost-effective measure, and having a portion of nuclear energy in the mix would firm up our energy supplies and reduce the average cost to customers over an extended period of time, compared to a renewables-only approach.

In short, adopting a balanced approach with a mix of zero-emissions nuclear energy and large-scale renewables will be cheaper in the long run and better for the environment. The facts we are uncovering as part of the committee's work are exposing some of the scare campaigns that have been used to support the current moratorium on nuclear energy.

Energy security is a matter of national security: every country needs to be able to keep the lights on, run the public transport network, hospitals and universities, and ensure businesses and farmers can still produce goods at a competitive price, which are needed in a modern society.

Nuclear workforce transition

All of our major trading partners have nuclear in their energy mix, and we already have a small but highly capable nuclear capability in Australia associated with the Lucas Heights reactors, which have operated safely for decades just 30 kilometres from the Sydney CBD.

We are also moving towards nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement, which will require the development of a civilian nuclear-trained workforce to sustain the defence capability over its lifespan.

Interestingly, the committee has been repeatedly told that most workers in coal-fired power stations like the Latrobe Valley could be re-trained for high-paying jobs in the nuclear energy sector.

Future energy plans

There are 32 countries in the world that currently have nuclear power, and more than 50 countries are looking at including the next-generation nuclear technology in their energy mix for the first time.

If we win the next election, the Coalition's plan is to undertake a full site assessment and community consultation process for more than two years to assess the most viable sites going forward. I'm not an expert, and I am keeping an open mind about our region's suitability to host a nuclear power station as existing coal-fired assets reach the end of their useful lives.

But I have made it very clear in all conversations with my colleagues that I would expect to see a significant investment in the region's facilities and services, on top of the jobs that would be created. If we are going to host both large-scale nuclear and renewable energy infrastructure in the future, there has to be respect shown to local communities and measurable benefits for our region.

Pictures from Darren Chester MP website.

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com