Mr STIRLING - 1999-08-12
In the context of today’s headlines on prices, when is the government going to cut power prices for Territorians?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, those of us who have been in this place for a while would appreciate that the Northern Territory inherited a legacy of very run-down services. When we became a self-governing entity it was necessary for us to review the infrastructure that we inherited. The power infrastructure that we inherited was entirely …
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr DUNHAM: It was the visionary CLP governments of yesteryear that took up the challenge of providing fuel from the centre of Australia for a gas-fired power station. The pipeline traverses the Territory to reach the Channel Island power station. It was visionary thing to do at the time and it cost lots of money. All that money has been put into providing power to Territorians well into the future. It has come at a cost. Our infrastructure is much newer than that found in the other states and we have a power station that’s much cleaner. We have a future that is much brighter than in other states because of the vast offshore reserves available to the Territory.
Mr Toyne: And the answer is?
Mr DUNHAM: The answer is that, like every government, we would like to provide the cheapest power we could to Territorians. At the moment, we have a situation where the Power and Water Authority is moving to commercial practice. In doing so, it has to charge prices that accurately reflect the cost of power. It is unfortunate that we can’t drop the price of power close to zero. But that would be a commercial nonsense.
This government will make every endeavour to make sure that the power charges that Territorians face will be ...
Ms Martin: The highest in Australia.
Mr DUNHAM: They are not the highest in Australia! That is a falsehood. I am aware I can’t use the ‘h’ word. I am happy to table a document that shows that the Territory, in blue, compared with other jurisdictions, in green, is quite obviously not the highest. I ask that the comment be withdrawn because it’s tantamount to a lie.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The Minister for Essential Services has the floor. I am finding it very difficult to hear what he is saying, so I’m sure listeners on radio are finding it impossible.
Mr DUNHAM: The simple fact is that we are not paying the highest power charges. The government will do everything it can to keep power costs low, but we face a commercial reality in the future. The commercial reality is that prices have to accurately reflect what it costs to produce power.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, those of us who have been in this place for a while would appreciate that the Northern Territory inherited a legacy of very run-down services. When we became a self-governing entity it was necessary for us to review the infrastructure that we inherited. The power infrastructure that we inherited was entirely …
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr DUNHAM: It was the visionary CLP governments of yesteryear that took up the challenge of providing fuel from the centre of Australia for a gas-fired power station. The pipeline traverses the Territory to reach the Channel Island power station. It was visionary thing to do at the time and it cost lots of money. All that money has been put into providing power to Territorians well into the future. It has come at a cost. Our infrastructure is much newer than that found in the other states and we have a power station that’s much cleaner. We have a future that is much brighter than in other states because of the vast offshore reserves available to the Territory.
Mr Toyne: And the answer is?
Mr DUNHAM: The answer is that, like every government, we would like to provide the cheapest power we could to Territorians. At the moment, we have a situation where the Power and Water Authority is moving to commercial practice. In doing so, it has to charge prices that accurately reflect the cost of power. It is unfortunate that we can’t drop the price of power close to zero. But that would be a commercial nonsense.
This government will make every endeavour to make sure that the power charges that Territorians face will be ...
Ms Martin: The highest in Australia.
Mr DUNHAM: They are not the highest in Australia! That is a falsehood. I am aware I can’t use the ‘h’ word. I am happy to table a document that shows that the Territory, in blue, compared with other jurisdictions, in green, is quite obviously not the highest. I ask that the comment be withdrawn because it’s tantamount to a lie.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The Minister for Essential Services has the floor. I am finding it very difficult to hear what he is saying, so I’m sure listeners on radio are finding it impossible.
Mr DUNHAM: The simple fact is that we are not paying the highest power charges. The government will do everything it can to keep power costs low, but we face a commercial reality in the future. The commercial reality is that prices have to accurately reflect what it costs to produce power.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016