Chris Bowen has expressed his gratitude to the countless employees – past and present – at Liddell Power Station, who helped light NSW for more than half a century.
The federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy visited the site, located between Muswellbrook and Singleton, this week to thank the workers who’ve operated the Hunter Valley generator.
After 52 years, the plant will officially “switch off” on Friday 28 April.
“They’ve played an important role in powering Australian homes,” Mr Bowen said.
“Some of the workers have been at Liddell for more than 40 years.
“So, I wanted to acknowledge their contribution first-hand.
“I’d also like to thank AGL, the employees, the broader community and the union movement for the way they have planned this week’s closure, which will see no involuntary redundancies and most employees transition to similar roles nearby.”
Mr Bowen said regional communities, like the Hunter, would continue to power Australia into the future.
“A key priority for the government is to support workers in traditional industries through the global transformation to more renewable energy,” he explained.
“We need highly-skilled employees for new and emerging industries such as offshore wind and hydrogen, whether it be trades essential to mining, grid transmission capabilities or electrical.”
Since the confirmation of Liddell’s closure eight years ago, more renewable energy has come online than Liddell’s generation capacity, with several significant projects expected to bolster supply in the next few years.
Mr Bowen assured people the plant’s cessation would not lead to blackouts but admitted there was “more work to do”.
The Liddell site is set to host a 250MW battery as part of AGL’s Hunter Renewables Hub.
The government also reached a landmark agreement with the states and territories to establish a Capacity Investment Scheme to drive new dispatchable capacity and ensure energy market reliability.
The revenue underwriting mechanism will unlock about $10 billion of investment in over 6GW of clean, dispatchable power over coming years.
“We need a more orderly transition to renewables,” Mr Bowen said.
“A capacity mechanism will keep the lights on while establishing more firmed renewables just like the arrangements planned here at Liddell.”
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