Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton today presented a plan for building seven nuclear reactors across five states to the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA).
"We can’t switch nuclear power on tomorrow, even if the ban was lifted overnight. Like other countries, we need to ramp up our domestic gas production in the more immediate term to get power prices down and to restore stability to our grid. But what we can do is also ensure that Australia doesn’t miss the nuclear train," Mr Dutton told the CEDA Conference in Sydney.
But the speech failed to disclose how much it would cost to build the reactors.
“We’ll release our costings in due course, at a time of our choosing. I know Chris Bowen believes he’s running this debate, but he’s not, and we’ll provide more detail on many elements,” Mr Dutton was quoted as saying in The Guardian Australia.
Earlier in June, the Coalition announced its plans to build the nuclear reactors if it wins the next election. According to the Coalition, it would take 10-12 years to begin construction for the first reactor, with the remaining reactors following post-2040. Australia’s energy mix will include nuclear power and renewables, according to Mr Dutton.
It is proposed to build the reactors in the Hunter Valley, Lithgow, the Latrobe Valley in Victoria, Collie, Western Australia, and Port Augusta, South Australia, where coal-fired power stations already exist.
“I just think the juvenile discussion that the Prime Minister and the Treasurer and Chris Bowen have been carrying on with, they’re treating Australians like mugs,’’ Mr Dutton told 2GB prior to the conference today.
“They put out the photos of the three-eyed fish and the rest of it, but that fell flat because people knew it was nonsense.
“Of the top 20 economies in the world, Australia is the only one that hasn’t embraced or signed up to nuclear.
“In Ontario (Canada), people are paying one-third the cost of electricity that they are here in Australia because they’ve got nuclear in their system. I just think we need to have a sensible debate. We can’t run a modern economy without stable electricity.”
The Coalition proposal does not address Australia's energy problems, according to Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers.
“Peter Dutton’s nuclear fantasy is economic insanity. It costs more, it will push power prices up, it will take longer,” Mr Chalmers told Sky News on Sunday.
“He needs to come clean ... in this speech: what will it cost, what will it mean for power bills, how will he pay for it, and what will Australia do for the decades it will take to build these reactors.”