Pelican Point Power Station

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:24): He took a seat off Labor, sir. He's an exemplar! My question is to the Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy. How long does it take for ENGIE to turn its second 250-megawatt generator on at Pelican Point?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Treasurer, Minister for Finance, Minister for State Development, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy) (14:25): I'll get back to the house with an answer. I will ask ENGIE—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: It is important to note that 25 per cent of the time when gas-fired generators attempt to start they fail, because, again, this is not like flicking the switch on your gas heater at home, despite what members opposite might think. Most gas-fired generators have to start with another form of fuel to heat up, of course, which is the part that concerns me the most about AEMO's forecasting.

The people in New South Wales were given up to 36 hours of potential load shedding when they eventually load shed the second largest smelter in the country because their base load coal couldn't meet their demands. It is important to note that they had a lot of time to give notice to allow that demand to be managed. We had no notice.

Now, given that most gas-fired generators that are brought in to a quick start 25 per cent of the time, I am advised, fail to start, an hour's notice, 10 minutes notice, is not enough. But, I have to say that everyone thinks, except the Leader of the Opposition, that the Energy Market Operator did a bad job on Wednesday. The opposition thought that it did good job when it load shed South Australians.