National Energy Market Reform

Mr PATTERSON (Morphett) (15:01): My question is to the Minister for Energy and Mining.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr PATTERSON: Can the minister update the house on the importance of national energy market reform, and are there any alternative views?

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart—Minister for Energy and Mining) (15:02): I thank the member for the question. The member for Morphett has asked several questions about electricity in this house, as have other members. Like the member for Colton, and many others, he is very focused on what his electorate needs, and his electorate knows that after 16 years of Labor government one of the many things they need is cheaper electricity. It is a high, high focus for our government. His question, specifically, is about the importance of national energy market reform.

We do need national energy market reform. It has been well over a decade that we have needed this. It has been well over a decade that we haven't had it. At the federal level, across that decade there have been Liberal and Labor governments, and I would say that neither of them have delivered what they should. Over the last decade in South Australia, we have only had a state Labor government and it has not delivered its part towards national energy reform.

National energy reform is important for many reasons, but one of the most important ones is that it offers greater certainty to investors. We need significant organisations to invest in South Australia and other parts of the National Electricity Market, and they need certainty to do that. National energy reform will give them some of that certainty, and of course the national energy reform that's being considered at the moment is the National Energy Guarantee or the NEG, as it is regularly referred to.

I am sure members opposite and the member for Morphett would know that yesterday all state governments received confidential copies of the final version of the Energy Security Board's National Energy Guarantee. Members opposite, the member for Morphett and others would also know that on 10 August will be the next COAG Energy Council meeting. It is hoped that at that meeting agreement between the commonwealth and the states can achieve what we are all looking for, and that is national energy policy reform.

We need to decide, as a South Australian government, whether we support the version of the NEG that has been put to us, and we will do that over the next few weeks. Let me be very clear: if it's in the best interests of South Australians, we will support it; if it is going to deliver cheaper, more reliable, cleaner electricity, we will support it. Those are the things that our energy policy is focused on. Those are the priorities with regard to electricity that we took to the last election. If the NEG delivers that, as I hope it will, then we will support the NEG.

If the NEG offers that for all states, then I hope and expect that all states will support the NEG. Then, yes, we will finally have some significant national energy policy certainty so that all consumers in the NEG can look forward to lower prices, more reliable electricity and cleaner electricity as well. But that can only happen if the generators, the retailers, the transmission companies and the distribution companies are comfortable making investments so that they can put the equipment, the markets and the offers in place so that consumers can get what they deserve.

That's where we are heading with this policy. We have heard the opposition say very clearly that they do not support the NEG. It is an interesting thing to say when they haven't seen the final version, but they have said very clearly that they do not support the NEG, without having seen it. I say: if it's good for South Australia, we will support the NEG.

The SPEAKER: The minister's time has expired. The member for Kaurna.