The Liberal government has nothing to celebrate in the outcome of the Basslink arbitration process.
Shadow Minister for Energy David O’Byrne said the amount of compensation awarded through the arbitration process doesn’t come close to matching the cost of the crisis.
“The Liberals made decisions leading up to the crisis that meant we were poorly prepared and that the cost of the response to the crisis was hundreds of millions more than it should have been.
“It was the Liberals who forced Hydro Tasmania to drain the dams chasing profits, and the Liberals who mothballed the Tamar Valley Power Station, meaning it was unavailable to generate power at the start of the crisis.
“That meant Hydro Tasmania had to spend millions of dollars building diesel power stations to keep the lights on in Tasmania.
“On top of that, both the government and Hydro Tasmania have spent millions of dollars on legal costs and diverted resources to the legal battle with Basslink for 5 years. Tasmanians are potentially footing the bill for that.
“The damages awarded this week are a drop in the ocean compared to the total cost of the response to the crisis, and the Liberals are accountable for the massive financial hit to Tasmania.
“This government loves to talk about Tasmania’s renewable energy advantage. But it was the Liberals who turned Tasmania into the diesel-powered state as a result of their mismanagement of the state’s energy assets.
“And Tasmanians are the net losers, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.”
David O’Byrne
Shadow Minister for Energy
