Queensland election result potentially good news for renewables

Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she is confident Labor will be able to form a majority government after the November 25 state election in what would be good news for the renewables sector.

The Courier-Mail reported that Labor on Sunday night was close to securing the 47 seats in the 93-seat parliament that are needed for a majority government, with at least 43 seats secured so far.

Palaszczuk has reiterated a commitment to at least 50% renewable energy in Queensland by 2030, which, she says, has led to a AUD-20-billion (USD 15.3bn/EUR 12.8bn) pipeline of renewable energy projects. Earlier in November Labor said a continued commitment to renewables would support this pipeline of 8,800 MW of proposed large-scale renewable energy projects at earlier stages of development, which would create up to 15,000 jobs.

According to its Powering Queensland's Future plan, a re-elected Palaszczuk government will provide AUD 151.6 million in new funds for renewable energy generation. This would include AUD 97 million for solar schools and a AUD-50-million down payment for a new solar thermal "baseload" power plant.

Energy minister Mark Bailey said a re-elected government will create a new publicly owned CleanCo with a mandate to deliver 1,000 MW of renewable energy with a focus on flexible dispatchable generation.

(AUD 1 = USD 0.763/EUR 0.639)

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