Latest news with #Victoriangovernment
ABC News
a day ago
- Business
- ABC News
Renewable energy expert accuses Victorian government of concealing true cost of transition plan
Energy experts have accused the Victorian government of concealing the true cost of its plan to transition the state to renewable power. The government has released its final Victorian Transmission Plan (VTP), which outlines the investment and development needed for the state to achieve its goal to reach its targets of 65 per cent renewable energy generation by 2030 and 95 per cent by 2035. The plan divides the state into six onshore energy zones and a Gippsland offshore zone. It names seven priority projects to expand renewable power generation and infrastructure, including offshore wind in Gippsland and new transmission lines between Sydenham and Tarrone, Truganina and Deer Park, and Hazelwood and Yallourn. It was compiled by government body VicGrid, which has costed the shift to renewable generation at $7.9 billion dollars. It said the seven new projects were needed in addition to existing transmission projects, such as Marinus Link, Victoria to New South Wales Interconnector West and Western Renewables Link. In announcing the plan, Energy Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said Victoria had the most ambitious renewable energy targets in Australia. "Coal generators are getting older, they're getting less reliable and they're closing," Ms D'Ambrosio said. "Our government has been very clear in our ambition to grow the necessary replacement electricity that we need to sustain our way of life." VicGrid suggested the VTP would lead to cheaper wholesale power prices. "Overall VicGrid's modelling suggests that Victorian energy bills could be $20 lower per household and $50 lower per small business each year (real $2025)," the report stated. Those figures have been described as "nonsense" by the director of the Victoria Energy Policy Centre at Victoria University, Bruce Mountain. "I don't think this is a plausible plan," Professor Mountain said. Mr Mountain estimated the plan could cost up to $28 billion over the next decade. He said there was no doubt that Victoria needed to expand its clean energy production, but he accused the government of using "sleight of hand" tactics to disguise the true cost. "They are only including a very small subset of the transmission expansion plan that they have set out and they've done that by simply relegating the vast bulk of the expenditure into what they call the base case. "I think the government is petrified of the actual outlays that their plan entail." He said households and businesses would face substantially higher bills over the next decade. "It might well be that if the government proceeds with this plan, customers will simply find it unaffordable and so then taxpayers will be forced to bear some large part of it. "I estimate small household bills will increase by about half. "Large bills paid by large industry, for whom the electricity transmission charge is a much bigger portion of their bill, they can expect bills to increase by between two-and-a-half and three-and-a-half times." The $7.9 billion dollar figure stated in the VTP was double the cost estimate Ms D'Ambrosio gave to a parliament estimates committee two months ago. On Saturday, she attributed the rise to updated transmission costs projections by the Australian Energy Market Operator. "That report itself has already indicated pressures on building costs right across the country," Ms D'Ambrosio said. "But can I say, unequivocally, the cost of not building the projects in the Victorian transmission plan will end up costing every Victorian far more through increased energy bills." Mr Mountain disagreed with Ms D'Ambrosio's assessment. "It's kind of a refuge of the scoundrel to say 'but for our plan, something else would happen' when of course you conjure up any other possibility." Senior fellow of the Energy Program at Grattan Institute, Tony Wood, agreed the figures given in the VTP were misleading. "When it talks about the potential for consumer bills, household bills being $20 per annum less because of this plan, that's not less where they are now, that's less than what they would have been if we had a different plan," Mr Wood said. "Does that mean that we can expect our bills to go up or down? It's not clear at all." But Mr Wood said the plan was important for Victoria's future. "For the first time really, we've got a comprehensive plan on how we're going to build renewable energy in Victoria to replace coal and connect all that renwable energy into the grid. "That's a very important step forward." Opposition leader Brad Battin said Victorian power bills were already too high. "Household energy is getting to a stage that people genuinely can't afford it. Businesses are closing because they can't afford to pay the price of energy here in our state." VicGrid had originally proposed seven onshore zones. But todays final VTP revealed VicGrid has consolidated the Wimmera Southern Mallee and Grampians zones into the single Western renewable energy zone. It said modifications were also made to the zones following feedback from regional communities and Traditional Owners about the need to protect farmland, minimise the effects on biodiversity, water systems and regional areas, and account for natural hazards such as bushfires and flooding. It also said it had expanded the total size of the energy zones after the industry said it needed larger areas to develop technically and commercially viable renewable projects. The VTP has been heavily opposed by some communities, with some farmers vowing to lock developers out of their land. The report sets out that companies proposing projects would need to negotiate with landholders for the right to use their properties, declaring owners would have the right to say no to having new renewable generation on their land. "Landholders who do agree to new renewable development will receive financial compensation that is negotiated with the developer," the report states. Western Victorian farmer Ross Johns is the president of the Wimmera Mallee Environmental and Agricultural Protection Association. He said the final VTP has not provided any certainty or reassurance for farmers. "The government just keeps changing the plans, the rules, the objectives, how it's going to occur," Mr Johns said. Mr Johns said energy projects disrupt agricultural operations and amenities for rural communities. "It looks like to me government doesn't really fully understand the issues. "The footprint of some of these transmission lines is huge, like it's 40 metres by 40 metres so that land will never be able to farmed or operated again. "If it goes angle ways across the paddock, it actually significantly impacts the commercial viability of those farming operations." He declared the government would have to build the new infrastructure 'through enemy territory'. 'What you've got is a bunch of rural people and farmers who are extremely resourceful. Farmer Ben Duxson from Marnoo, also in Victoria's Wimmera region, said his community felt like it was being railroaded by the government. "Our stance has always been that they need to stop and actually get an energy plan that's good for Australia for the next 100 to 200 years and this certainly isn't a plan that's going to do that," Mr Duxson said. "We'll stand in our gateways and we'll fight." Alex Rae is on the board for the Golden Paradise Beach Community Development Fund, which represents communities affected by the Gippsland Shoreline Renewable Energy Zone. He said the communities of Golden Beach and Paradise Beach had been sidelined. "We've put in submissions [and] raised concerns throughout the process with VicGrid, but it just feels like our voice is being dismissed because we're small communities," Mr Rae said. "The maps don't even acknowledge us as being directly in front of the offshore wind zone, where turbines will permanently industrialise the seascape." Mr Rae said projects like Navigator North already had plans to install turbines about 30 kilometres from the coast, which would affect property prices and the local tourism industry. "We're not against renewables of course, but you we are talking about potentially hundreds of these turbines all the way along the coast. "[We are] tiny coastal towns and a lot of the economy here for the small businesses rely on tourism.
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Automotive
- The Guardian
EV drivers set to pay road user charges as record number of electric cars selling in Australia
Labor is set to overhaul road user charging rules to cover electric vehicles, with Anthony Albanese all but confirming the long-delayed reform will be thrashed out at next week's productivity roundtable in Canberra. As data from the Australian Automobile Association showed EVs accounted for nearly one in 10 new car sales in the June quarter – a new record – the prime minister said the new rules would be worked through in this term of parliament. In recent years the federal budget has been affected by declining fuel excise revenue – collected via petrol prices at a rate of 51.6 cents per litre – as drivers shift to battery-powered vehicles. But a 2023 high court ruling delayed progress on taxing drivers after it found the Victorian government's attempt to impose a tax on EVs was unconstitutional – because only the federal government had the power to impose excise taxes on consumption. Since then, state and federal treasurers have discussed ways to tax EV drivers and maintain budget revenue. After the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, signalled road user charging was likely to be considered earlier this week, Albanese said on Wednesday a solution to the growing problem was needed. He said Labor had sought to be constructive when the Morrison government considered introducing new charges, plans which fell through before Labor came to power in 2022. 'What I believe is that we need money to ensure that roads are adequate and that is a long held belief,' Albanese said. 'What we need to do is to work those issues through and to come up with a realistic plan that can be implemented. And we'll await those discussions.' Sign up: AU Breaking News email The AAA's quarterly EV Index showed Australians bought 29,244 new battery electric vehicles in the June quarter – up 63% from the nearly 18,000 registered in the previous three months. Chalmers said Labor had flagged plans for new EV rules before the 3 May election, working in concert with the states and territories. 'We haven't settled on a model or on timing when it comes to that change,' he said. 'Clearly a government of either political persuasion will need to make changes there because the excise take on petrol will come down as petrol vehicles exit the fleet and as EVs take up a bigger and bigger proportion in the decades ahead. Polestar Australia's managing director, Scott Maynard, said the summit should instead commission a review of the whole transport ecosystem, ensuring it is fit for purpose. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion The Chinese-backed Swedish carmaker has sold about 1,400 vehicles in Australia in 2025. 'Motorists are already paying stamp duty, registration, fuel excise, luxury car tax, fringe benefits tax, and tolls,' Maynard told Guardian Australia. 'You're going to place this on top, and that doesn't make sense. 'We would call for a road user charge to be part of a broader review of the current fees and taxes paid by Australian motorists to reconcile that and set it out more sensibly.' The Productivity Commission has previously called for action on road user charging, saying road infrastructure around the country should be funded through user charges reflecting 'the efficient cost of providing and maintaining that infrastructure'. 'By giving drivers a clear signal about the cost of infrastructure, they would have an incentive to use it more efficiently,' the commission said. 'Moreover, there will be a signal to infrastructure providers where changes in road capacity are warranted.'
The Guardian
03-08-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Last resort: when the only option left amid Australia's housing crisis is a motel
Blanche is a lot of things: a mother of eight and a grandmother of 10. A viral TikToker. A survivor of family and domestic violence. A former drug user, clean for nearly two years. And she is, for the moment, housed. To the 49-year-old, the two-bedroom community housing she has in Melbourne's west feels palatial. She previously spent seven months living in a hotel room with her youngest son, then aged nine. Before that, they were wrapped in blankets on the street. They spent four years bouncing around. 'I thought having a drug addiction was hard, but being homeless is harder,' she says. Driven by a cost-of-living crisis, exacerbated by growing family violence, and priced out of the private rental market, more parents and their children are experiencing homelessness. New data from Launch Housing shows that a lack of stable long-term housing means more families are being housed in emergency accommodation such as hotels, with average stays now stretching out to 12 weeks. Every year, the organisation supports 230 families in hotel rooms, with stays funded by the Victorian government. It's unclear how many crisis-supported accommodation rooms there are in the state – but Launch runs 11. Blanche and her son lived in one room, sleeping in two beds. 'I wasn't allowed to have any visitors or anything,' she says. 'Only one powerpoint worked at a time, and I got bloody frostbite sores on my toes. We only had one little heater. 'We didn't have cooking facilities. I bought an air-fryer … Once a week, my son and I went to [fast food restaurant] Lord of the Fries and got nuggets for him. 'Like any other homeless person, sometimes we choose between eating and our children.' On Wednesday morning, sitting in her lounge, which also doubles as a bedroom for her daughter and her new grandson, just six weeks old, Blanche was excited. She's taught herself how to use TikTok – a video of her as an AI mermaid has blown up, hitting over 30,000 views. Blanche, who escaped domestic and then family violence, had never had an ID in her life – until last year. As a young girl, she was a ward of the state. She had her first child at 15, after she was abused. She doesn't know how to use a computer. Despite where she's been and what she's experienced, she laughs easily. Sign up: AU Breaking News email Throughout their stay, her son was going to school, but living in a motel followed him into the classroom. 'He suffered at school,' she says. 'Kids are arseholes to homeless children, and his teachers would ask him questions like 'do you sleep with your mother'. He didn't have friends. 'And because I have no teeth, I got judged. It was very hard to get a job.' For some of the stay, Blanche did not have government help to pay the rent, so she worked as a cleaner at the motel where she also lived. For every two hours she cleaned, she would get a $50 discount. Launch's acting group manager for families and new beginnings, Angela Zheng, says fewer than 1% of private rentals are available for families on income support. 'There is also not enough housing out there,' she says. 'There's a lack of community housing, and there are limited options for crisis-supported accommodation. 'So the demand is just growing.' The current homelessness support system was originally set up when single male clients were the main group of people requiring support, which is no longer the case, Zheng says. Last year, over 60% of adult homelessness clients across Australia were women, and more than 75,000 were children under the age of 18. 'We're calling for more crisis-supported accommodation,' she says. 'That means there is support on site. It's often co-located with children's programs, with government services, so it's a kind of a hub that families can link in with.' The Victorian Department of Housing, Homelessness and Fairness, which financially supports the motel stays, spent more than $14m in 2024–25 to place people in emergency accommodation like hotels. 'People are doing it tough right across the country, and that's why we're investing in the support services that help Victorians sleeping rough not just find temporary accommodation but stay in safe and secure long-term housing,' a spokesperson for the department said. 'Each year we invest more than $300m into specialist homelessness services every year, to assist around 100,000 Victorians who are at risk of or experiencing homelessness.' Tyrone is the father of five children. In 2023, he and his wife spent almost three months living in two studio apartments side by side. Their youngest was four, the oldest 17. 'Our most difficult task was trying to make meals,' he says. 'We had one electric saucepan, a kettle and a rice cooker. Lucky I'm a chef – I could kind of wing it.' Over the course of three months, Tyrone watched his kids get more depressed. His wife was home schooling the younger ones, but the older ones had nothing to do. '[They] just watched TV until early hours in the morning and then slept all day,' he says. 'When I came home from work, we would go across to the park. Just to kick the ball and try and get them outside.' The family is now in a private rental, which Tyrone can just afford on his wage. While they're all close, he says the hotel stay affected his family. 'We were stuck in the same room for so long that we … started to have a few little arguments, or tiffs. Those kinds of pressures.' After almost eight months living in the motel, Blanche was connected with Launch Housing's family accommodation program, which looks at finding long-term options. 'My son is traumatised,' she says. 'For the first few months or so, he couldn't sleep with the door closed; he didn't close the shower door … It was hard just to transfer away from me. 'Now I don't see him,' she laughs. 'He's just on his bloody PlayStation.' In her new house, there are bright colours everywhere, with walls covered in tie-dye and Disney characters. 'But none of this feels like mine, or ours,' Blanche says. 'Because it's not … We're still living on the edge.' Blanche and her family have fought – to get clean, for this roof over their heads. She says she didn't ask to be homeless or to be hit by her partner. She has been living in the shallow end of Australia's housing crisis, and is still seeing the impact of it on her son. 'They've got to think of the kids. They've really got to think of the kids.'
ABC News
01-08-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Red tape cut for farmers looking to build small on-farm abattoirs in Victoria
The Victorian government will change the state planning rules for micro abattoirs, allowing farmers to fast-track the construction of small processing facilities on their properties. On Thursday, the Victorian government tabled its response to the inquiry into the food security in Victoria report. The inquiry, which delivered its report in November, found demand for fresh fruit and vegetables was increasing as the state's population grew, and urban encroachment into farmland was making it difficult and expensive to grow food close to Victorian cities. The report made 33 recommendations and, in its response, the Victorian government said it would support in full or in part 29 of the recommendations, including the suggestion that it should be easier for small producers to access kill facilities for livestock. Small producers have faced limited options for processing their animals after large, often foreign-owned, abattoirs stopped taking small orders. In its response, the Victorian government said it would amend its planning provisions "to make it easier to establish micro abattoirs in appropriate rural and regional areas". This will mean that on most rural and agriculture-zoned land, small abattoirs will not require a planning permit. Those abattoirs will still be subject to health and environmental laws, with the Environmental Protection Authority and Victorian meat regulator Primesafe sign-off needed. Central Victoria farmer and spokesperson for the Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance Tammi Jonas said it had taken her several years to get the planning permits for her micro abattoir, but the change would substantially lower the red tape. She said the facilities were important for small businesses like hers that did not process large numbers of animals to supply farmers' markets, local cafes and restaurants. Chinese-owned abattoir Kilcoy Global Foods stopped taking small orders last year, forcing Ms Jonas to drive more than three hours to get her animals processed. "It's going to be a massive relief for everyone to hear that we won this because the access has been diminishing rapidly across Australia, not only in Victoria," Ms Jonas said. She said small-scale abattoirs on farms could provide better welfare outcomes for animals, with less travel and stress on livestock prior to processing. Ms Jonas said she knew of at least six similar small abattoir projects that, once the changes were made by the Victorian government, would face minimal planning processes. Ms Jones said she thought other states should follow suit. A Victorian government spokesperson said they hoped to make the planning amendments by the end of the year. "Micro abattoirs will soon be treated as part of a full range of farming activities on those located in farming, rural activity, and green wedge zones — this aligns with the way boning rooms on farms are already treated," the spokesperson said. "This will make it easier for small-scale producers to control their whole supply chain while continuing to meet Victoria's high food safety and animal welfare requirements and environmental protection and community amenity standards." Victorian Farmers Federation livestock president Scott Young said the farming body would be "closely watching how these planning reforms are implemented" and wanted to make sure food safety, animal welfare, and traceability systems were maintained. "We must ensure any new micro abattoir approvals uphold those standards, not create loopholes that could put markets or community trust at risk," he said. "Supporting local processing is a good thing — but it must be done right, with appropriate oversight and a level playing field for all producers."
