Victorians should brace for blackouts this summer due to the Andrews Labor Government’s mismanagement of our energy system according to the Australian Energy Market Operator.

In its Statement of Opportunities (SOO) report, AEMO predicts that ongoing risks to the availability of Yallourn Power Station in Victoria will“significantly affect” its ability to meet demand from Victorian consumers, with up to 500,000 households at risk of being without power during an extreme weather event this summer.

In worrying confirmation of Labor’s Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio’s prediction that“the system’s gonna collapse”, the SOO finds that the unreliability of Victoria’s power will immediately exceed AEMO standards once Yallourn is retired in just seven short years.

Despite the Andrews Labor Government’s assurances that batteries will help plug Victoria’s looming energy shortfall, the likelihood of Labor’s much-touted 350 MW battery at Jeeralang actually being built is not sufficient for it to be factored into Victoria’s future energy mix. AEMO has also reiterated that the“scale of the damage” and “impact on commissioning schedules” caused by the blaze which engulfed Labor’s Big Battery is yet to be determined.

The Liberal Nationals have now twicecalled on the Andrews Labor Government to guarantee that repairs and investigations into the Big Battery blaze will be finalised prior to summer and demanded that investigations be open and transparent for the benefit of all Victorians.

Added to Labor’s litany of broken promises is a finding that the state’s“power system is also becoming more exposed to extreme weather events that could lead to supply scarcity” – when as far back as 2016, the Andrews Labor Government committed to“Developing a diverse and distributed energy system that provides Victorians with energy security in the face of extreme weather events.”

Where the Andrews Labor Government has failed, a Liberal Nationals Government will succeed in delivering renewable, reliable, and affordable power to all Victorians.

Statement issued by
Brad Rowswell
Member for Sandringham