Latest news with #WesternRenewablesLink
Herald Sun
3 days ago
- Business
- Herald Sun
VNI West powerline deal: TCV offers farmers $460,000 a km
A slowdown in the rollout of Victoria's 500kV VNI West transmission line, has prompted its proponent to offer landholders an extra $460,000 to sign easement deals. Transmission Company Victotria has already offered up to $50,000 in sign-on bonuses, which comes on top of an annual state government contribution of $8000 per kilometre of the line built across landholders properties for the next 25 years. TCV confirmed this week it had not signed any easement agreements with the 220 landholders along the proposed VNI West route. Most landholders have refused to budge, prompting the government to draft legislation imposing penalties of up $12,210 for anyone landholder who tries to block transmission The Weekly Times understands TCV is desperate to avoid seeing footage of farmers being arrested on the evening news and has come up with a plan to boost landholder payments. Sutherland farmer Barry Batters, who has about 4kms of the proposed VNI West line crossing his property, said landholders were 'willing to be arrested' in their bid to stop TCV accessing their land. Such resistance has pushed TCV into upping its offer, recently briefing the VNI West Community Reference Group on a new '$46,000 per hectare landholder benefit payment', which it developed in response to feedback that 'compensation alone was not a benefit'. The payment equates to $460,000/km on a 100m-wide transmission easement traversing a farm and comes on top of the government's $200,000 over 25 years, plus statutory payments made under the Land Acquisition and Compensation Act. Of the $46,000/ha, 20 per cent is paid upfront when the establishment and access deed are signed, then another 20 per cent when the option for easement is signed. However TCV has failed to brief farmers on the tax treatment of the payments, which if defined as off-farm income could be taxed at 45 cents in the dollar. Farmers are still sceptical as to how successful the new payment will be in getting landholders to sign up to easement agreements. Dooboobetic grain grower and harvest contractor James Burke, who faces 9km of the proposed VNI West line being built across the family's 3600ha property, said the additional $46,000/ha payment would make 'zero difference' to those opposing the project. 'I don't believe people understand what it's going to do,' Mr Burke said. 'We can't operate the latest John Deere harvesters under it, and they're getting bigger every year.' 'It'll ruin some of the best dirt in Victoria - the Gooroc Plain.' The slowdown has forced TCV to extend the VNI West completion date from 2028 to 2030 for VNI West. The progress of the massive Western Renewables Link is also under a cloud, after porponent AusNet extended the transmission lines completion dat sfrom mid-2027 to late 2029, due to landholder resistance and a slowdown in the pace of construction. Both projects also face the uncertainty of what happens if a Liberal-Nationals government is elected in November next year, given the coalition is considering a Plan B alternative that would end the need for VNI West. Australian Energy Market Operator Victorian group manager Claire Cass, who is overseeing the VNI West, notified landholders last week that the 2028 completion date for the project had been delayed until 2030, to 'account for time needed to progress land access arrangements' and other planning and environmental assessments. WRL general manager Gerard Carew said 'we recognise that hosting infrastructure like the Western Renewables Link can be challenging and in response to landholder feedback, we have recently introduced a range of new compensation and benefit sharing initiatives for landholders. 'We are currently positively engaging with the majority of landholders.' However AusNet has admitted its lack of access to properties along the 190km WRL route hampered its ability to prepare an Environmental Effects Statement for the project, which it finally released this week after months of delays. 'As we have not been able to access all sections of the proposed route, the data included in the EES takes a conservative approach to ensure all potential environmental impacts,' AusNet stated. The EES states that while 'construction of the (WRL) project may temporarily disrupt routine activities and restrict land use', the longer-term residual impacts were assessed as minor for construction. However the EES also states 'potential impacts from restrictions and disruptions to routine activities, and the temporary isolation and redundancy of productive land may vary property to property and in some cases could be greater. 'Impacts will be managed through the development and implementation of property-specific management plans and strategies.' Meanwhile AusNet is also trying to gain wider community support for the project by offering payments to the neighbours of affected landholders. The WRL Near Neighbour Benefit program offers payments of $20,000 to anyone within 400m to 1km of the transmission line and $40,000 for those closer than 400m. Victorian Nationals leader Danny O'Brien said the Coalition was considering the Plan B 'cheaper, less disruptive option, as we finalise a position ahead of next year's election'. Plan B involves using 1321kms of existing powerline easements to lift the state's transmission capacity by 16,675 megawatts, allowing more wind and solar farms to connect to the grid and eliminating the need to construct the VNI West project. Originally published as Farmers offered $460,000/km in latest VNI West deal
Sky News AU
3 days ago
- Business
- Sky News AU
Two-year delay for VNI West sparks fresh doubts over Australia's renewable energy ambitions
Australia's shaky transition to clean energy has suffered a major blow, with the roughly $4 billion VNI West electricity interconnector project now delayed by two years – moving the delivery date from 2028 to late 2030. The postponement raises serious concerns over whether the Albanese government can meet its renewable energy targets, including a plan to double the grid's renewable share to 82 per cent by the end of the decade. The pressure is mounting as major coal plants like Victoria's Yallourn station are still on track to close in 2028, leaving a potential gap in supply. Stretching 240 kilometres across Victoria and New South Wales, the VNI West project is facing stiff resistance from landowners and farmers who have become increasingly vocal about the proposed route slicing through regional communities. Back in May, VicGrid – the agency overseeing the project on Victoria's end – told The Australian that delays for both VNI West and the Western Renewables Link were in part due to the challenge of earning 'social licence' among affected communities. The new timeline deepens concerns around the state's broader transition strategy, especially given the critical role of transmission in delivering new solar and wind generation from renewable energy zones in western Victoria and along the Murray River. The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) says the delay reflects 'revised planning, design and construction assumptions' and allows for a more inclusive process with landowners. 'The new construction completion target allows more time for detailed environmental, geotechnical and cultural assessments, along with more meaningful landholder engagement on access and easement arrangements,' said Claire Cass from AEMO's Transmission Company Victoria (TCV) unit. 'We know this updated timeline may be frustrating, but we're committed to working with landholders respectfully and providing the support they need to consider what is best for them, their properties and farming or business operations.' The state government insists the delay won't impact reliability in the short term. 'AEMO has indicated the revised project timeline will not impact the reliability of Victoria's electricity network,' a government spokeswoman said. AEMO is expected to factor in the revised deadline in its upcoming Electricity Statement of Opportunities report due in August. The delay comes on the back of AEMO's recent warning in May, when it flagged a blowout in the cost of delivering $20 billion worth of transmission projects. These soaring costs – partly fuelled by skill shortages and growing resistance from rural communities – could add to household power bills. Overhead transmission line costs have spiked by as much as 55 per cent, while substation costs have surged up to 35 per cent, based on updated estimates from AEMO's 2024 modelling. The new 2030 timeline also aligns with the release of TCV's easement and access package for VNI West, set to be delivered directly to landowners along the proposed route. 'For the first time, landholders will receive detailed information about the project benefit payments they can receive, indicative property-specific impact compensation and field survey access terms,' Ms Cass said. TCV stressed that reviewing the documents or engaging with liaison officers did not mean landowners were endorsing the project. 'The approach simply provides landholders with more say on how the project may affect them and their properties, so that compensation accurately reflects the impact,' Ms Cass said. Meanwhile, AusNet – developer of the 190km Western Renewables Link – last week announced a new 'Near Neighbour' payment scheme, offering up to $40,000 to households within a kilometre of the planned infrastructure, in an attempt to ease opposition. 'The Near Neighbour Benefit Program was a recognition that neighbours have similar experiences to those landholders directly hosting infrastructure on their land,' AusNet said. Despite these financial sweeteners, frustration continues to grow among Victorian farmers, many of whom say they're bearing the brunt of the state's renewables push. They accuse the Allan government of ignoring their concerns and putting food security at risk in its haste to overhaul the power grid. Both the VNI West and Western Renewables Link projects were originally due online in 2028, a timeline that aligned with the planned closure of several legacy coal plants. Now, officials and energy experts are sounding the alarm over the growing gap between ambition and delivery, as Victoria targets 65 per cent renewables by 2030 and 95 per cent by 2035. The state's transition blueprint includes 5.2 million solar panels, nearly 1,000 wind turbines, and transmission corridors covering 7 per cent of Victoria's landmass, all under intense scrutiny as delays and discontent mount.
