Glynde Substation

Mr TARZIA (Hartley) (15:11): My question is to the Premier: has the Premier committed to making government land available to ensure that a suitable alternative site for the Glynde substation is found?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Treasurer, Minister for Finance, Minister for State Development, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy, Minister for Small Business) (15:11): The government took a detailed policy to the election about the Glynde substation, and that substation policy was very simple: we would do all we could to help SA Power Networks find an alternative site.

Luckily, SA Power Networks has advised the government that it is now working (I believe) with Renewal SA and the appropriate government bodies to find an alternative site. That doesn't rule out the site, but we will be doing everything we possibly can to try and minimise the impact if that site is chosen. But we are doing our damnedest to make sure that an alternative site is found, because it is the right thing to do by those residents.

I also point out that substations is a very finely balanced argument. When members opposite privatised our electricity assets they also privatised the function of—as I understand it, so I am advised—development approvals. For things like substations in very controversial areas like residential areas where people don't want to have substations—quite rightly; no-one would want to live next to a substation—that power was taken away from government and given to a private company like SA Power Networks.

The government has owned that site for over 50 years for a substation so the people of Glynde would not be short of power. We are doing everything we can to try and find an alternative site, and we will continue to do everything we can to find an alternative site. But these problems exist all across metropolitan Adelaide, and I am sure there are many members who have substations in their electorate near residential areas where they would like to see them either moved or not developed.

It is a very difficult piece of public policy when we have something that is as important as electricity and we have development or power sitting and resting with a private company on the basis of a privatisation. I think that can cause a lot of angst amongst the public, and we are doing all we can. The local councils can do more—I would like to see them do more. I think the state government can do more, and SA Power Networks can do more. A cooperative approach to this is to work together to try and find an alternative site.

The part that concerns me as energy minister is that Glynde's power supply is becoming very close to the low peak, so we could see rolling stoppages if demand keeps on growing. Thus far we have seen demand not grow at that rate, so there shouldn't be an issue with the Glynde substation needing to be built any time soon. So that gives us plenty of time to go out and find an alternative site. This is a very good example of a local MP who worked exceptionally hard to try and get a good outcome for their constituents.

Ms Redmond: And now they've got a better MP!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Spoken like a true impartial judge, jury and executioner! Are you going to accuse someone of corruption again? Got a spare five minutes to accuse someone else of corruption? So we do what we can and I welcome a discussion with the member for Hartley about how we can find an alternative site nearby that will service his constituents, because I can tell you one thing that the constituents will not accept, and that is freezing to death in the dark.