Office of Hydrogen Power

Mr PATTERSON (Morphett) (15:10): My question is again to the Premier. When was the last trip to Europe taken by staff of the Office of Hydrogen Power, and have staff now stopped travelling overseas?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Energy and Mining) (15:10): The Office of Hydrogen Power SA doesn't just oversee the Hydrogen Jobs Plan, it also oversees the Hydrogen Hub at Port Bonython. Members might be aware of this. They committed $30 million to this.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Do you remember this? The Morrison government matched it and their job—that is $60 million worth of funding for the Hydrogen Hub. The Office of Hydrogen Power SA has been tasked by the commonwealth and state governments in a bipartisan way—it used to be bipartisan anyway—to leverage another $40 million worth of private investment into Port Bonython. This is at a time when there was bipartisan support with the 'hydrogen, hydrogen, hydrogen' headlines being run by—

Mr Patterson interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Sorry? That's right, $60 million, and just remind the nice people in the room here today, how many hydrogen developments have occurred at the Hydrogen Hub? Are members opposite saying that their $30 million investment was a waste? Is that what they're saying? No, Mr Speaker. Some members will have a lot of time to travel soon. If the intel from the Adelaide Hills is correct, someone will have plenty of time to travel soon.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: It is on the record, absolutely. I am looking forward to the answer to my proposition to you that you will have lots of spare time soon. The Office of Hydrogen Power SA and all public servants travel, and when they travel they seek permission from their ministers. Mr Speaker, let's be very clear about this: we are interested in someone purchasing the steelworks and getting it out of administration.

My friend the Minister for Trade and Investment is undertaking a body of work with state development to make sure that the steelworks are in a position to be sold. The Treasurer has put up vast amounts of money from a deferral of the Hydrogen Jobs Plan to make sure that we can safely fund the administration. My agency and these agencies are all working together with DPC to do everything we can to make sure that we can get a foreign investor or a domestic investor to purchase the steelworks.

Make no mistake, we are targeting Japan, South Korea, Germany, the United States. We want steelmaking countries to be looking at the steelworks as an integrated option to purchase. If that means sending public servants to talk about the opportunity to decarbonise green iron, to decarbonise iron making, we will be doing that.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Sorry, what countries? The member asked which countries are decarbonising iron making. Japan is looking at it, Korea is looking at it, Germany is looking at it, the United States is looking at it. Every major steelmaker in the world—even China—is looking at decarbonising their iron making. How are they doing that? The same way we want to decarbonise it, natural gas and hydrogen: two commodities, two forms of fuel the members opposite are opposed to. If they need to travel, they will. If State Development, Treasury officials, DEM officials need to travel, they will, because the most important economic priority right now for this state government is the survival of the Whyalla Steelworks.