Bowen thanks Liddell workers, reiterates need for skilled hydrogen workforce
Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen visited the Liddell Power Station today to thank the workers who operated the Hunter Valley generator over the past 52 years.
“I thank the many thousands of employees who’ve worked here at Liddell and played an important role in powering Australian homes,” Minister Bowen said.
“Some of the workers here have been at Liddell for more than 40 years – and I wanted to visit today to acknowledge their contribution firsthand.
“I’d also like to thank AGL, workers, the broader community and the union movement for the way they have planned this week’s closure, which will see no involuntary redundancies and most employees transition to similar roles nearby.”
Minister Bowen said that regional communities, like the Hunter, which have powered Australia for generations will be the ones which power Australia into the future.
“Regional communities, like the Hunter, are at the heart of Australia’s energy transformation.
“A key priority for the Government is to support workers in traditional industries through the global transformation to more renewable energy – we need highly-skilled workers for new and emerging industries such as offshore wind and hydrogen - whether it be trades essential to mining, grid transmission capabilities or electrical skills."
Since the confirmation of Liddell’s closure eight years ago, more renewable energy has come online than Liddell’s generation capacity, with several significant projects expected to bolster supply in the next few years.
The Liddell site is set to host a 250MW battery as part of AGL’s Hunter Renewables Hub.
The Federal Government has reached a landmark agreement with the states and territories to establish a Capacity Investment Scheme to drive new dispatchable capacity and ensure energy market reliability.
The new revenue underwriting mechanism will unlock around $10 billion of investment in over 6GW of clean, dispatchable power over coming years.
“We need a more orderly transition to renewables,” Minister Bowen added.
“A capacity mechanism will keep the lights on while establishing more firmed renewables just like the arrangements planned here at Liddell.”
