Ms WALKER - 2013-08-20
Chief Minister, your decision to renege on your government’s deal over gas to Gove has placed the town and region in jeopardy. Businesses face closing, and residents will lose their jobs and their homes will be devalued.
I want you to visit and explain why you broke your deal. Dropping the announcement on the Show Day public holiday and refusing to meet with the families whose future you have threatened is appalling behaviour. Here are the voices of 1000 concerned people. When will you go to Gove to meet with the residents?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, it is important that this issue is raised. It is interesting to see the member for Nhulunbuy finally ask a question about gas and start raising the issues about certainty for the future of Gove. Over the last five years you did not say one word in this Chamber. Labor was in government for eleven-and-a-half years and did not come up with a solution. Only the Country Liberals have come to the table and tried to provide a solution for the residents of Gove you might recall, member for Nhulunbuy. To start voicing your concerns now, when you had nothing to say in the last five years - you need to be responsible in this regard.
Let me go to some facts. When this was raised with the County Liberals government we took it seriously because we have concerns about the residents of Gove and want to ensure we have strong regional support for economic development. The Rio Tinto or Pacific Aluminium refinery at Gove and the bauxite operation is an important economic driver in the Northern Territory. It is very important to the people of Gove and the surrounding region. Are we committed, as a Cabinet, to investigate the release of 300 PJ of gas subject to due diligence and a range of other conditions applied to the agreement?
Conversations were had. Correspondence was had with the CEO of Rio Tinto backward and forward. We made it very clear at the time it had to go through a due diligence process and we employed several experts to look at that. They came back with a report - and the executive summary has been made public - which identified the reduction in gas supply from 2026 to 2034 would expose the Northern Territory to the tune of $400m per year. That is $400m per year put onto power prices in the northern suburbs. Power prices across the Northern Territory would have increased as a result of that $400m exposure ...
Ms WALKER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance. My question was very specific: when will the Chief Minister be coming to Gove?
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, you have the call.
Mr GILES: Madam Speaker, we knew that $400m exposure would drive power prices up across the Northern Territory and would not have provided energy security.
We have been working diligently with Pacific Aluminium, ENI, and other gas companies, pipeline operators, the department of Resources in Canberra, and Gary Gray, the federal minister, with Ian Macfarlane, the shadow minister, in meetings throughout the Northern Territory, interstate and overseas trying to solve these issues. We reached the point where we knew it would be challenging for us to continue with 300 PJ of gas ...
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The minister’s time has almost expired. Will you go to Nhulunbuy and listen to the residents?
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order, sit down. Chief Minister, continue.
Mr GILES: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I will not get to the end of this answer, unfortunately, but the Northern Territory government remains committed to the people of Gove and trying to find solutions to ensure there is energy security to Rio Tinto.
I want you to visit and explain why you broke your deal. Dropping the announcement on the Show Day public holiday and refusing to meet with the families whose future you have threatened is appalling behaviour. Here are the voices of 1000 concerned people. When will you go to Gove to meet with the residents?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, it is important that this issue is raised. It is interesting to see the member for Nhulunbuy finally ask a question about gas and start raising the issues about certainty for the future of Gove. Over the last five years you did not say one word in this Chamber. Labor was in government for eleven-and-a-half years and did not come up with a solution. Only the Country Liberals have come to the table and tried to provide a solution for the residents of Gove you might recall, member for Nhulunbuy. To start voicing your concerns now, when you had nothing to say in the last five years - you need to be responsible in this regard.
Let me go to some facts. When this was raised with the County Liberals government we took it seriously because we have concerns about the residents of Gove and want to ensure we have strong regional support for economic development. The Rio Tinto or Pacific Aluminium refinery at Gove and the bauxite operation is an important economic driver in the Northern Territory. It is very important to the people of Gove and the surrounding region. Are we committed, as a Cabinet, to investigate the release of 300 PJ of gas subject to due diligence and a range of other conditions applied to the agreement?
Conversations were had. Correspondence was had with the CEO of Rio Tinto backward and forward. We made it very clear at the time it had to go through a due diligence process and we employed several experts to look at that. They came back with a report - and the executive summary has been made public - which identified the reduction in gas supply from 2026 to 2034 would expose the Northern Territory to the tune of $400m per year. That is $400m per year put onto power prices in the northern suburbs. Power prices across the Northern Territory would have increased as a result of that $400m exposure ...
Ms WALKER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance. My question was very specific: when will the Chief Minister be coming to Gove?
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, you have the call.
Mr GILES: Madam Speaker, we knew that $400m exposure would drive power prices up across the Northern Territory and would not have provided energy security.
We have been working diligently with Pacific Aluminium, ENI, and other gas companies, pipeline operators, the department of Resources in Canberra, and Gary Gray, the federal minister, with Ian Macfarlane, the shadow minister, in meetings throughout the Northern Territory, interstate and overseas trying to solve these issues. We reached the point where we knew it would be challenging for us to continue with 300 PJ of gas ...
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The minister’s time has almost expired. Will you go to Nhulunbuy and listen to the residents?
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order, sit down. Chief Minister, continue.
Mr GILES: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I will not get to the end of this answer, unfortunately, but the Northern Territory government remains committed to the people of Gove and trying to find solutions to ensure there is energy security to Rio Tinto.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016