Liberals must not repeat Basslink secrecy

  • Second fault this year
  • Outage impacts energy sales to the mainland
  • Budget impact must be explained
  • Tasmanians deserve straight answers about the latest fault in the Basslink undersea electricity cable.

    Shadow Minister for Energy David O'Byrne said the Liberal Government must not keep Tasmanians in the dark like they did during the 2016 energy crisis.

    "The Basslink cable is a vital link to the National Electricity Market, not just for energy security, but so that we can generate income from energy sales which helps to fund essential services," Mr O'Byrne said.

    "While our dam storages are healthy, that does not mean that a prolonged Basslink outage doesn't have an impact.

    "Every day the cable is out of action means lost income for Hydro Tasmania.

    "How much will this outage cost the Hydro and what will be the impact on the State Budget?

    "Given this is the second outage this year, what are the concerns about the long term reliability of the cable?

    "These are serious questions and Tasmanians deserve answers, not secrecy from the Liberals."

    David O'Byrne MP

    Shadow Energy Minister