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“We are facing a climate emergency,” Premier Anastacia Palaszczuk said in her State of the State address at a CEDA function. She noted that Queensland is facing dramatic problems from rising sea levels in Torres Strait, record “rain bombs”, bushfires, and a total of 98 natural disasters in the last decade. “Climate change is real …. but we need to do more than talk about it. We need to act, and act in a revolutionary way,” she said.
The Premier launched a $60 billion Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan which will transform Queensland from a coal dependant state for energy to one powered by solar and wind renewables with pumped hydro energy storage, as well as grid batteries, and an upgrade to the transmission grid.
The plan encompasses:
- At least 25 GW new and existing renewable energy
- Gladstone grid reinforcement to support heavy industry to switch to renewable energy and decarbonise their operations
- All publicly owned coal-fired power stations operating as clean energy hubs by 2035, supported by a legislated Job Security Guarantee for energy workers
- Two new world-class pumped hydro projects that together could deliver up to 7 GW of long duration storage
- Around 1500km of new high voltage backbone transmission to move more power around the state
- Up to 3 GW of low to zero emissions gas generation for periods of peak demand and backup security
- A smarter grid to support over 11 GW of rooftop solar and around 6 GW of batteries in homes and businesses
It should be noted Queensland is a major exporter of both thermal and metallurgical coal and this plan does not cover this coal production for the export market.
