The Hunter's peak industry body has supported the Australian Energy Market Operator's call for urgent investment in generation, long-duration storage and transmission to achieve energy certainty.
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AEMO chief executive Daniel Westerman said timely investment in the grid was needed as Australia ended its traditional dependency on coal-fired generation and faced delays on major projects including Snowy Hydro's Hunter Power Project at Kurri.
Business Hunter chief executive Bob Hawes said the AEMO statement reflected the key concerns of businesses in the region, who will see the closure of Liddell power station in April with no major renewable energy projects in sight.
"Businesses have been holding their breath for some time now, with increasing uncertainty over pricing and reliability holding them largely at ransom," Mr Hawes said.
"The only certainty we've had is when traditional energy assets will be retired, which does not give businesses confidence to embark on growth or expansion plans, and in many cases casts a shadow on their ability to maintain current operations."
Energy bills are an acute source of concern for Hunter businesses, with 20 per cent indicating they were extremely concerned (on a score of ten out of ten), about the impact of energy costs on their ability to maintain existing operations and staffing levels.
Mr Hawes said the AEMO update reiterated Business Hunter's long-standing concern that renewables were not coming online fast enough, highlighting the planning pathway as a key constraint.
"Our State Election Platform makes several recommendations for the incoming government on energy policy. Eliminating planning queues for all renewable energy and energy storage projects via automatic state significant infrastructure status is high on that list," Mr Hawes said.
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Matthew Kelly
Matthew Kelly has worked as a journalist for more than 25 years. He has been working as a general reporter at the Newcastle Herald since 2018. In recent years he has reported on subjects including environment, energy, water security, manufacturing and higher education. He has previously covered issues including the health and environmental impacts of uncovered coal wagons in the Hunter Valley, the pollution of legacy of former industrial sites and freedom of information issues.
Matthew Kelly has worked as a journalist for more than 25 years. He has been working as a general reporter at the Newcastle Herald since 2018. In recent years he has reported on subjects including environment, energy, water security, manufacturing and higher education. He has previously covered issues including the health and environmental impacts of uncovered coal wagons in the Hunter Valley, the pollution of legacy of former industrial sites and freedom of information issues.
