Page 426 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 18 March 2014
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Dr Bourke: Point of order, Madam Speaker. This is a new question, is it not, or is this—
MADAM SPEAKER: No, Ms Lawder did not rise. I thought there was no supplementary question. It is obviously a supplementary question to Mr Wall’s question.
MR CORBELL: Could you repeat the question?
MADAM SPEAKER: Supplementary question. Thank you, Ms Lawder.
MS LAWDER: On what date did the government invite proponents to provide proposals for solar power facilities?
MR CORBELL: I assume that Ms Lawder is asking the question in relation to on what date did the first request for proposal go forward under the solar auction process. If that is the question that is being asked, I am very happy to provide that date to Ms Lawder. I do not have it immediately to hand. So I will take the question on notice. But that is how I will answer that question.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Dr Bourke.
DR BOURKE: Minister, what will be the benefit to the ACT of large-scale solar projects?
MR CORBELL: There will be significant benefit to residents of the ACT, and not just in terms of the environment benefit, which of course is one of the key reasons why the government is pursuing the renewable energy projects that I have been outlining over the last few weeks, and indeed over the last few years. We know, for example, that the three large-scale solar projects that have been approved by the government, in terms of allocation of a feed-in tariff support mechanism, will deliver abatement equivalent to around 40,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each and every year that they operate. We know that those projects are bringing over $100 million worth of investment into the ACT community. And we know right now that those projects are generating local jobs in our community as well. The Royalla project is engaging local contractors, it is using local suppliers and it is delivering and supporting local jobs in our community. That is a good thing for our city.
In the future, as the government continues to roll out its program of support for large-scale renewables, we will see more jobs in our city. We will see more investment in our city and in our region. The government is determined to build on that by, for the first time, endorsing what I characterise as a local content provision in our feed-in tariff mechanism, requiring bidders in the auction process to deliver local content in terms of investment in our research institutions, investment in our local economy with the use of local contractors or establishment of some of their functions here in the territory. That is good for our economy as well, and it is another part of why these projects are so important. (Time expired.)
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