Project EnergyConnect

Mr MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Leader of the Opposition) (14:13): My question is to the Minister for Energy. Does the minister agree with the Australian Energy Market Commission's findings on the benefits to consumers from the construction of the New South Wales-South Australia EnergyConnect project. With your leave and that of the house, Mr Speaker, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr MALINAUSKAS: The Australian Energy Market Commission in its public statement today says, and I quote:

…significant reductions in wholesale electricity prices as a result of Project EnergyConnect are not expected to occur until after 2030.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for West Torrens will cease interjecting. The minister has the call.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart—Minister for Energy and Mining) (14:13): We are already seeing very significant decreases in the wholesale cost of electricity in South Australia. At our last announcement, we made it very clear that reductions in wholesale prices are flowing through to reductions in retail prices for South Australian households and businesses. We know this is happening. Will it continue to happen, as the Leader of the Opposition suggests? Well, for as long as we are in government I'm sure it will continue to happen.

We do expect that we will see continued reductions in electricity prices. Will that be a straight line? No, but like most things the average is continuing to go down—some days higher, some days lower, but the average is going down, which is in stark contrast to what we saw under the previous government.

Let me be as helpful as I possibly can. In the lead-up to the last election, the then opposition leader, the now Premier, made it very clear that of all the components that make up the retail cost of electricity it was the previous government's failures that led to an increase in the wholesale cost of electricity.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: The member for West Torrens rises on a point of order. The minister will resume his seat.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: The question was very specific. The minister is debating the question. The question was whether or not he agreed with the statements from the Australian Energy Market Commission. Instead, he is debating the answer.

The SPEAKER: I listened carefully to the leader's question. The minister is going about answering it and, in accord with standing orders, there is no point of order. The minister has the call.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Thank you, Mr Speaker. Perhaps the member for West Torrens wasn't listening because I have already said that, yes, we will see continued reductions in the wholesale cost of electricity. The date I think was 2022. I can't remember exactly the date in the question, but, yes, we will see continued reductions in the cost of wholesale electricity.

Let me be really clear. We said before the election that the previous government's energy policies had directly resulted in massive increases in the wholesale cost of electricity. We said that we would take responsibility in partnership with industry, in partnership with consumers, in partnership with academic institutions, generators, transmission companies, gas companies—

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: —that we would work with all of those organisations—

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: —to get the wholesale price of electricity down.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis: Shake your head harder; he didn't see it.

The SPEAKER: The member for West Torrens will leave for 15 minutes in accordance with standing order 137A.

The honourable member for West Torrens having withdrawn from the chamber:

The SPEAKER: The leader rises on a point of order.

Mr MALINAUSKAS: Debate, Mr Speaker. My question very specifically goes to the heart of this project: the interconnector. The minister is constantly talking about wholesale electricity prices and their beneficiary of the former Labor government's policy. The question—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, members on my right!

Mr MALINAUSKAS: The question goes specifically to the question of why won't the interconnector deliver benefits until after 2030 according to the AEMC.

The SPEAKER: I take it the point of order relates to standing order 98(a). I have referred already to Blackmore at page 127 earlier this week. The minister is within the bounds provided for, including in that commentary. The minister has the call.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Thank you, Mr Speaker. Let's hope we are in government in 2030 and, yes, we will continue to see reductions in wholesale electricity costs. As I have already said—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: —the wholesale cost of electricity is going down through the things that we, in partnership with industry and many others, are doing, and it will continue to go down. It's going down because of the Home Battery Scheme, it's going down because of the grid-scale storage scheme, it's going down because of demand management trials, it's going down because we are starting early works on an interconnector. It's going down for lots of reasons.

We are working with industry, with consumers, with a whole range of people. Do you know what? I have offered many times here that we will work with the opposition as well. The problem is that the opposition can't settle on a position on the interconnector. The opposition one day thinks it's good and one day thinks it's bad. I never thought—I hoped, I suppose, that I would never hear the Leader of the Opposition come into question time complaining about reduced wholesale electricity prices.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Before I call the member for Newland, I warn the member for Lee; I call to order the Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services; I call to order the Minister for Education; I call to order the leader; and I call to order the Premier.