OZ Minerals

Mr MURRAY (Davenport) (14:39): My question is to the Minister for Energy and Mining. Can the minister please update the house on recent developments for OZ Minerals here in South Australia?

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart—Minister for Energy and Mining) (14:39): Thank you to the member for Davenport for his question—a very objective, thorough and well-researched member he is, representing his electorate, with a strong interest in the mining and resources sector. OZ Minerals has recently announced that they are concluding a deal to purchase electricity, which will save them approximately 20 per cent of their electricity costs every year.

That is an outstanding achievement for OZ Minerals. Any company would be very pleased to do that, but it is also a very positive development for the resources sector and also for electricity consumers across the board. For a company such as OZ Minerals to acquire electricity for their two main operations at Prominent Hill and Carrapateena, and to see a 20 per cent decrease in their electricity costs through contracting, is very positive with regard to the direction of the market and forward contracts in general. So we are seeing, under a Marshall Liberal government, that the tide has turned. We are seeing that the market—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Giles!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: —is factoring in our policy, which was announced—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr Picton: Your policy was to support the NEG; it doesn't exist any more.

The SPEAKER: The member for Kaurna is warned.

The Hon. J.W. Weatherill: Say it with a straight face.

The SPEAKER: Member for Cheltenham! The minister has the call.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: The market is factoring in our policy, which was announced over 12 months ago, and the rollout started after the last election in March. We are already seeing benefits from, among other things, the market factoring in our energy policy. So OZ Minerals are very pleased, the entire resources sector is pleased and all electricity consumers in the state will be very pleased to see a downward trend in electricity prices, which was never seen in the dying years of the former Labor government.

Mr Hughes: Well on the way.

The SPEAKER: Member for Giles!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Another very important development for OZ Minerals is the actual construction work, the hard physical work that they are doing on their Carrapateena site. In addition to the runway, which was in place a while ago, and in addition to the enormous—

Mr Hughes interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Giles!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: —distance of underground tunnels they have already developed and continue to develop, they have poured the concrete for their processing plant. They have their accommodation site up and running, and their communications facility is nearly complete as well. OZ Minerals are a tremendous company doing a fantastic job, working well with local pastoralists, working well with local traditional owners, working well for the benefit of South Australia and, of course, as they should, for their shareholders.

They have a very bright future. They see downward electricity prices into the future. They are getting on with the job. They are doing a fantastic job, and all South Australians will benefit from their ongoing operations at Prominent Hill as well as their newly developed operations—not into production yet, but not too far away—at Carrapateena.