By DAVID BRAITHWAITE
THERE are questions over the future of a proposed $1.6 billion power transmission line.
Premier Ben Carroll has ordered a cost review of the Western Renewables Link (WRL), the same day Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny approved the environmental effects statement for the project, a proposed 190-kilometre transmission line to connect renewable energy projects in western Victoria to the energy grid.
Mr Carroll said the review aimed to reduce building costs, and there would be no compulsory acquisition of property while it was underway.
“I respect the public’s money. This project was planned almost 10 years ago and Victorian consumers deserve updated, transparent costings,” Mr Carroll said.
The news came a week after VicGrid announced Central North Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) will no longer go ahead as a result of further technical assessments and community consultation.
The Central North REZ was proposed for an area between Bendigo, Shepparton and Echuca. With no new transmission projects planned and many generation projects already progressing in the area, VicGrid determined there was limited capacity on the grid to support a renewable energy zone.
There are a significant number of solar generation projects already operating, approved or seeking connection in the region. This means it is likely most remaining capacity on the grid would be allocated before the new access regime associated with renewable energy zones is introduced.
VicGrid has also received significant feedback from the community and regional stakeholders on the proposed zone, with concerns raised around issues including biodiversity, flooding and the significance of agricultural land in some areas of the zone.
The VicGrid decision does not mean there won’t be renewable energy development in the area, with many solar and battery projects already well advanced. Projects that are currently underway will continue to work through planning and connections approvals processes.
REZs are areas identified as the best places to host wind, solar and battery projects.
In May, the state government formally declared five onshore REZs, including one between Sale and Moe, along with the Gippsland Shoreline REZ, which will host underground cables connecting wind farms in Bass Strait to the power grid. Back then, the government said consultation for the Central North REZ was continuing.
Victorian Farmers Federation President Ryan Milgate said the VicGrid decision regarding the Central North zone was “a step in the right direction for the community and a recognition that landholders deserve to have a genuine say in decisions that affect their farms, their livelihoods and the future of their region”.
