‘Well over a trillion dollars': Nationals leader David Littleproud issues fresh warning on the cost of Labor's renewables revolution

Sky News AU

3 days ago

Australian taxpayers may be on the hook for more than a trillion dollars to fund Labor's costly renewables rollout.
The government has been told to rapidly boost its public spending to achieve its emissions reductions and renewables goals.
Labor's target to reach 82 per cent renewables in the electricity grid by 2030 is set to fail by a 'big margin', according to economist Ross Garnaut who was a principal advisor to former Labor governments on climate change.
The grim reality of Labor's lofty targets has triggered the productivity commission to urge the government to expand its direct investment into renewables to cut quickly cut emissions.
It warned that the government's plan to cut emissions would 'come with costs', but it failed to specifically outline how much its proposed net-zero push would cost.
Nationals leader David Littleproud warned the true cost to achieve the 82 per cent renewables target and the government's emissions reduction goal could top $1 trillion.
'I think we've got well over a trillion dollars that the Australian taxpayers are going to pay and you're going to pay that through your energy bill every quarter and you should see Anthony Albanese and Chris Bowen's face on that bill every quarter,' Mr Littleproud told Sky News Australia on Monday.
He argued the government's capacity investment scheme as well as the "underwriting of prices" would see the true cost balloon.
The Coalition's pre-election energy plan would have seen renewables contributing about 50 per cent to the electricity grid, with nuclear and gas as the baseload power sources.
Modelling by Frontier Economics showed the plan would come in $264 billion cheaper than Labor's all renewables approach.
'You can't do it with renewables and it's madness to try and do it that way and that's where we should have all the energy options on the table including gas and coal with carbon capture storage,' Mr Littleproud said.
The Nationals leader said the government had failed to explain how much its integrated system plan would cost Australian taxpayers.
He criticised the government's persistent claims that renewables were the cheapest form of power despite plunging billions of taxpayer dollars into green subsidies.
'If they're the cheapest form of energy, why do we need to underwrite the price on which they're getting paid for? And this is where there is no transparency and I think what we'll be very upfront and honest is about having a mix,' Mr Littleproud said.
The productivity commission urged Labor to develop an 'enduring, national carbon price', drawing back on the deeply unpopular policies of the Rudd-Gillard governments.
Its 83-page report ahead of Treasurer Jim Chalmers' productivity commission also recommended the government give unprecedented powers to Climate Change Authority boss Matt Kean to assess and scrutinise climate change policies.
In addition to factoring in the price of carbon while assessing emissions reduction plans, the report also calls for major reforms to the approval process for renewables projects.
"We need to build a large amount of clean energy infrastructure to meet climate targets and ensure reliable and affordable energy supply. But our sluggish and uncertain approval processes are not up to the task," Commissioner Martin Stokie said.
The Commission argues for substantive changes to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, including the introduction of national environmental standards, improved regional planning and clear rules about engaging with local communities and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.