CHRIS BOWEN MP
MINISTER FOR CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENERGY

ED HUSIC MP
MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND SCIENCE

 

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
PRESS CONFERENCE
BIDWELL
TUESDAY, 1 APRIL 2025
 
SUBJECTS: Community Batteries; Energy; Cost of Living.
 
MINISTER FOR CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENERGY, CHRIS BOWEN: Well, it's great to be here in Bidwell with my friend Ed Husic opening another community battery. Community batteries have an important role play across the country. This is how we help people in the suburbs. This will help people who maybe have solar panels but haven't been able to afford a household battery yet, or indeed, under this model, people who don't even have solar panels can sign up to participate in using the energy that's been stored during the day. People in Bidwell do need that cost of living support. Ed has been a champion to make sure that people at Bidwell get their support. I'm delighted to be able to officially launch this battery, and it's supported by other telegraph pole mounted batteries around Bidwell to ensure that the energy is spread around. Again, I'm opening three more batteries later today, Hobartville (indistinguishable) This is a Western Sydney story. With Western Sydney benefiting from our community battery program on matters of the day. You know, the Ed and I, as Albanese Government Cabinet members, are always happy to talk about energy, always happy to talk about both plans. I was on 730 last night. Ed was on Q and A last night, talking about nuclear, talking about the cost of nuclear, talking about the delays in nuclear, talking about how it's not the right answer for Australia, talking about how the Liberal Party modeling falls apart at every single examination. Liberal Party's modeling, the nuclear shows very little gas. It shows an immediate drop off in gas use across the country, by some miracle. And now Mr Dutton and Mr O'Brien are coming on saying, "You know what? We need more gas." Well, either they're right now, or their nuclear modeling is right. Both can't be right. Well, I can tell you what. They have not thought this through at every single examination, their policy falls apart. And that's pretty clear when Mr. Dutton is unable to answer pretty simple questions about his policy. Going to go to Ed, then we'll take questions maybe from journalists here, and I know we've got a couple of journalists on the phone as well. I'll take questions from them.
 
MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND SCIENCE, ED HUSIC: Thanks, Chris. And firstly, can I just say it means a great deal to be able to get infrastructure like this in parts of Western Sydney that in particular I represent, there are a lot of people that do have solar panels but also a lot of people that don't. People that do have solar panels notice the big impact on their power bills. We want to be able to spread that benefit and help with people's cost of living. And so having community batteries, where solar panels generated elsewhere, where the excess is put into the grid and where it can be shared with others, to be able to get those savings is hugely important. Western Sydney has embraced, as you'll see, the need to put on solar panels on their roofs. They get that it makes a saving. And it's also important to note that EV uptake is probably highest in Western Sydney, than most other parts of the city, or, dare I say, the country. Why? Because people want to make a saving on their fuel costs and go to EV instead of necessarily paying for fuel, and they can use their own solar generation to help drive that EV and give it the power that it needs. But I'm adamant, someone that represents Mount Druitt and 2770, that people in these parts get as much benefit of this infrastructure as other parts of the city, hugely important. I just wanted to quickly also add, in terms of nuclear this is a, dare I say, a bipartisan focus. We are happy to talk about a policy of the Liberal Party that they no longer want to talk about. They announced it with much fanfare, and then it just disappeared. And now they're talking about gas. Can I just say, folks, when they talk about gas, it's not that is not the policy that we should be focusing on, and they don't want you to focus on the other policy that they announced on energy. Gas has now become the distraction for the Liberal Party to avoid the absolute sinker that is the nuclear plan that they have, a plan that costs too much, delivers too little, arrives too late and won't really get the country ready in terms of its energy supply. We reckon that we've got this great opportunity to mobilise Australian manufacturing to make the things that reduce emissions and create great jobs along the way. The Liberal Party just wants to be able to distract they're coming up now. They're talking tough on gas. They had a chance to stand up with us. They stood back and opposed our plan to put energy price caps on and no one seriously - I just want to end on this point. Do you really believe Peter Dutton is going to go up to a gas executive and tell him that he's going to seize their gas and put it into that reservation plan? This is a this is a very poor joke on the Australian public. They weren't there when we needed them. They won't be there when we need them, and it's only really Labor that's got a plan for affordable energy that can create great jobs in the process.
 
JOURNALIST: Mr Bowen, an International Energy Agency analysis shows the highest prices actually came from nations with 40% plus renewables. Under your plan, Australia's energy grid will be 82% renewables by 2030. Have you factored in battery costs at all? And why should vouchers trust your claims your plan is cheaper?
 
BOWEN: Well, you've misrepresented the IAEA report with great respect. Secondly, absolutely, and this is one of the great mistruths that is spread by the Liberal Party, that somehow the cost of storage and transmission isn't included in the cost of renewables. Page, I think, 15 and 16, if I remember correctly, of GenCost, makes it clear that it is. Now the difference is Ed and I don't think we know better than CSIRO. Mr. Littleproud, Mr. Dutton and Mr. O'Brien think that they do. And on the first day of the election campaign, Mr. Littleproud, most improperly questioned the integrity of the CSIRO. Ed might want to add to this as the Minister for CSIRO. Let me tell you this. I was outraged. He's done it yet again. The CSIRO prepares GenCost and hands it to government. I read it on the day it's released or the day before it's released. All the work is done by the CSIRO and absolute arm's length for the government of the day, and that was the case of the Liberal and National Party. CSIRO found that renewables were the cheapest form of energy, including transmission of storage when the Liberals were in office, I find the same when Labor is in office. I don't assert that the Liberal Party interfered with the CSIRO. It would be wrong to assert that, and it was wrong for Mr Littleproud now, and the Liberal Party should just accept the facts that renewables, including the cost of transmission and storage, is the cheapest form of energy available.
 
HUSIC: Thanks, mate. I just wanted to say the CSIRO is made up of a lot of great scientists and researchers who are motivated by one thing, doing the right thing by the country. They want to do their job the best, and they don't need to be attacked or brought into a partisan play by the Coalition. I was genuinely stunned that we had David Littleproud heap on top of what Peter Dutton has said in times past, it's an extraordinary intervention by them to basically blacken the reputation of the CSIRO that has done terrific work over generations, and importantly, it was so over the line, it required the Head of the CSIRO in Doug Hilton to come out and defend scientists and researchers. Here's the thing, when you ask the Australian public who they trust, they trust scientists. They trust them for good reason, and they don't need politicians coming in to try and suggest that their work is motivated by anything other than the public good, and the CSIRO does not need the Coalition trying to undermine it. And frankly, the Coalition does owe Australian scientists and researchers a massive apology for suggesting that their work is done by anything other than good intent and doing the right thing by the country.
 
JOURNALIST: Mr Bowen will the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard put up the price of petrol cars?
 
BOWEN: No and we've been very clear about that, and it hasn't put up the price of petrol cars anywhere else in the world. And when Paul Fletcher was trying to introduce the NVES when he actually believed in something, he said the same. Now the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard puts Australian motorists in the driving seat when it comes to choice. And I'm proud of the fact that we have tripled the model the number of EV models available since we came to office. When we came to office, there was, there were no models available under $45,000 now there's eight. That is our policy starting to work with a lot more to do, Liberal Party and National Party need to work out whether they believe in choice for Australian motorists or they're against it.
 
JOURNALIST: Your 82% renewable plans need significant battery and around 10,000 kilometres of transmission. What will you cut to pay for it?
 
BOWEN: Well, I don't accept even vaguely the premise of your question. I'm glad you said 10,000 kilometers, because the Liberal Party says 28 that's a lie. We've been very clear. Our $20 billion Rewiring the Nation fund has been in all our budgets. I'm not sure where you're coming from with cuts. But Mr. Dutton will have to cut to pay for his $600 billion taxpayer funded frolic. I mean, the vast majority of investment in renewable energy, including batteries, comes from the private sector. Every single dollar of nuclear investment will come from the taxpayer has to be paid for, to be paid for by cuts by Mr. Dutton. I might go to the telephone.
 
JOURNALIST: Can I ask your reaction to Peter Dutton's announcement last week that he would claw back the Rewiring the Nation contracts. How much of that $19 billion of funding has been spent on contracts and how will he be able to claw back the $19 billion of funding?
 
CHRIS BOWEN: Thanks for the question Jack. It's not so much the contracts that have been entered into. The bigger question, I think, is, which projects would Mr Dutton cut? Now would he cut the Marinus Link, which he says he supports? That's a big one out of Rewiring the Nation. The Liberal Party kept talking about it for nine years in office, we were actually delivering it. So for nine years they talked about how important it is. We're getting on and delivering it in partnership with the Victoria Government and the Tasmanian Government. So would Mr. Dutton cut that. Would he cut Hume Link which plugs in Snowy 2.0. I mean, the Turnbull Government made the decision to build Snowy 2.0 they forgot to plug it in. So we need to build Hume Link to properly connect it to the grid. Would he not proceed with that? Which would mean we spent $12 billion on Snowy 2.0 but it's not properly in the grid. He got project Energy Connect, which is almost finished. I mean, which of these projects would he cut? He talks about abolishing, Rewiring the Nation but then, when he's in Tasmania, he says,"Well, of course, I'm pro Marinus". Well, pro Marinus is funded in Rewiring the Nation. So what projects are you actually going to cut Mr. Dutton? That's the question he should answer. Explain to the Australian people, as I said yesterday, Australia's transmission good hasn't been invested in in any meaningful ways for 40 years, but we're now using a lot more electricity, and are going to use more electricity between now and 2050 so we're going to need to build new transmission. Whether the energy comes from renewable energy, coal, gas or nuclear. I'm not sure how Mr. Dutton thinks he's going to get his nuclear energy around the country. He says, "I will use existing transmission lines". Well, they're full. They're full from Port Augusta. They're full from the Hunter. If he's saying that somehow he's going to deliver nuclear energy by carrier pigeon, he should explain how that's going to work. I'll get the phone guys first.
 
JOURNALIST: Adam Morton from The Guardian, I'm interested in the future of gas in the electricity grid, the Coalition says it would flood the market. What do you see as the how much gas will need for generation?
 
BOWEN: Well, the role of gas will be peaking and firming\ to support renewables. We've been crystal clear about this all the way through. No gas has an important role to play to support renewables. It's Mr. O'Brien is suggesting, dare I say, an all eggs in one basket approach, which is slowing down investment in renewables while they wait for nuclear to come along. Now the virtue of gas is that it's flexible. It's not cheap and it's not low emissions, but it is flexible so it can be turned on and off at short notice. That's very important for energy generation when you're moving to a renewable system. So the Greens say no gas.  The Liberals say gas fired recovery. Both are equally unhelpful suggestions. Gas has an important supporting role to play as we move to 82% that's before we even get to the role of gas in supporting heavy industry. You can't make at this point, fertilizers, plastic, cement without gas. Green hydrogen has got, I think, good future, but it's not here yet. And the role of gas in supporting home heating. 5 million Australian homes use it for direct home heating.  Now, yes, some are electrifying, but we still need to provide gas to those 5 million homes so we have a balanced approach to gas. It supports renewable energy. It is flexible. Can be turned on and off for short notice. Coal can't, nuclear can't. That's the role of gas.
 
JOURNALIST: A second question on the COP 31 conference. Peter Dutton described wanting to host that next year as madness that would cost 10s of billions of dollars. What's your response to that?
 
BOWEN: Well, he's wrong, and he's lying. I mean, those figures are just made up. You know, we are getting good support for our bid. Turkiye is the other bidder, as we've discussed. I'm confident in the amount of support we're getting, but this is a matter of our national interest. Now, the guy who says "the Pacific Islands don't care about time when the water is lapping against their door" now wants to remove the best opportunity for the Pacific to get the world's attention on climate change. And Peter Dutton, the guy who joked about islands being swallowed by water, now says we shouldn't c- host the COP with the Pacific. He would be a foreign policy disaster in the Pacific. It's also a great opportunity to sell Australia's renewable energy resources as a renewable energy superpower. It's the world's largest trades fair. Report after report has shown that it's got huge economic pay off. We see this as in our national interest, we've restored national leadership when it comes to climate change and international leadership. Mr Dutton would take us backwards he would be a worse Prime Minister for Climate than Tony Abbott or Scott Morrison, and that takes  some doing.
 
JOURNALIST: Mr Bowen, just quickly, when can we expect that will be announced?
 
BOWEN: This year sometime. We're partly in the hands of Turkiye and our constituent members in the group that we're in the United Nations. I'm hopeful in the next few months but, as I said, I'm pleased with the amount of support we're receiving in the 29 or so voters who get a say. I don't feel the need to go and argue for more support, (indistinguishable). Any more questions on the phone before I go back to folks here in Bidwell?
 
JOURNALIST: Had you had any feedback on Rewiring the Nation (indistinguishable).
 
BOWEN: Well, I mean, Mr Duigan, the Tasmanian Minister, issued a great release yesterday, if I say so, if I could say so. Strongly, backing the role of Rewiring the Nation and Marinus Link. Again, Mr. Dutton has got to explain is he for Marinus Link or against it.If he's for it, then he's not really abolishing Rewiring the Nation, because it's a big chunk of Rewiring the Nation. Is he for or against Humelink? Does he believe in connecting Snowy 2.0 or not? Which projects is he going to cancel under Rewiring the Nation? Is it the Pilbara projects? Is it Humelink? Is it Marinus? Tell us, Mr. Dutton. I mean, he, this guy, I've seen more details on the back of the corn flakes packet than in his energy policy. He can't explain the basic details. He's got a false saving there. Minister Duigan, the liberal minister in Tasmania, is right. Marinus is an important project for Tasmania, Victoria and the mainland, either Mr. Dutton or against him. Explain, explain. That's on him to explain where these $20 billion in cuts is going to apply when it comes to Rewiring the Nation. Okay, any more questions on the phone?
 
JOURNALIST: Yeah, just one more on batteries? You've announced a number of community batteries today. What can we expect to see from the government in terms of new household electrification measures prior to the election?
 
BOWEN: Well, I'm pleased that when we came to office, one in 60 Australian houses had a battery. Now it's one in 40. We've made very clear that's welcome. I'm not making announcements about that today. What I'm talking about today is community batteries. Okay, we'll go back here.
 
JOURNALIST: Thank you. If the Reputex modeling is outdated, why do you still have the 43% emissions reduction target and the 82% renewables target that were blocked from that model?
 
BOWEN: It's simply a statement of fact that modeling was done in 2021 and we're now in 2025, that's just a statement of fact. That's not a criticism of the Reputex modeling, it's a statement of fact that we're now in a different place, and this is the 2025 election we're fighting. In relation to 43%, why is it our target? Because we're achieving it. You know, I released the progress report in December, showing very clearly we're now on track for 42% emissions reduction. Not quite 43 but not bad, not far off it compared to what we inherited. Again, this is in our national interest, to reduce our emissions is in our national interest. Mr. Dutton can't tell you what he would do about 2030. He says he'll stay in Paris, but he won't comply with its conditions. I mean, this is just a rolling farce. We've been very clear. We went to the election with a target of 43%, got a mandate to do that, and we're implementing that.
 
JOURNALIST: And the 82% renewables target?
 
BOWEN: Your question, what's your question?
 
JOURNALIST: I mean, that was also plucked from the modeling. Does that still?
 
BOWEN: Sorry, I wouldn't say plucked from the modeling. It was, it was very consistent with AEMO's scenario. And again, we're on track. The last quarterly figures show we're at 46% renewables up from 33 when we came to office. We're more than halfway. Expert after expert now, now points out - there was some question about whether we get to 82 - but experts now, and the Clean Energy Council in particular, points out that the level of investment we are seeing is enough - if we keep going - which under our government we will, under Mr. Dutton's government, they won't get to 82. They would cap renewable energy at 54%. So, they pretend, you know, in some electorates to support renewable energy. Liberal candidates in some electorates say, "Oh, I'm for tripling of renewable energy". Well, their own policy would cap it at 54%. You can't say one thing in one electorate and another thing in another electorate. That's what Mr Dutton's team is trying to achieve, and we're not going to let them get away with that. I reckon that's a wrap, guys. That's a good go. Thanks.
 
ENDS

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