House of Assembly Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2) 53 2 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Ministerial Statement Ministerial Statement Energy Security Target Energy Security Target The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly West Torrens Minister for Finance Minister for State Development Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Treasurer, Minister for Finance, Minister for State Development, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy) (14:02): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement. Leave granted. The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I wish to update the house about the impending consultation period around the state government's energy security target (EST) draft regulations. As part of the state government's comprehensive energy plan, announced on 14 March, the energy security target will help ensure that South Australia has a secure power system and is more self-reliant. The scheme works by requiring retailers to purchase a minimum quantity of scheduled synchronous generation from South Australian generators. Generators qualifying for the scheme will include existing as well as new sources of secure generation. This scheme will apply to existing gas generators. It will also apply to concentrated solar or solar thermal plants and pumped storage. The EST is set to commence on 1 July this year at the target level of 4,500 gigawatt hours of generation, rising by about a third by 2025 to 6,000 gigawatt hours. Frontier Economics modelling shows that this scheme will result in lower wholesale electricity prices due to the increase in competition from local dispatchable generation. If the federal government does not wish to demonstrate any leadership in the future with regard to national energy policy, our scheme will merge seamlessly into a national emissions intensity scheme should one be introduced. In the meantime, the South Australian government has developed a consultation package on the legal framework that establishes the energy security target. This will be available online on the Department of State Development's website this afternoon. Stakeholders are welcome and encouraged to provide feedback through a written submission by close of business Friday 26 May. I look forward to updating the house further as our energy plan progresses.