Today the Nationals Senate Team showed their support of the importance of nuclear power to secure lower energy costs, provide reliable power for Australian industries, including manufacturing and capitalise on a low emissions future.
Nationals Senate Leader, Senator McKenzie stated: “The National Party Senators back regional Australia and know how important low cost, reliable power is to sustain rural businesses.
“Nuclear is a mature, low emissions technology and it is right that we should include it in any plan for Australia’s future. Keeping this technology on the bench, does not help Australia, in particular rural Australia which relies on low cost, reliable power.”
The Nationals Senate Team will continue to back rural Australia by promoting safe, logical, and proven technologies to ensure rural Australia continues to have access to low cost, reliable power.
“Yallourn Power Station’s closure in 2028 is going to cause significant shifts in our National Energy Market and we need to replace like generation with like generation.” Deputy Leader for the Nationals in the Senate, Senator Matt Canavan said.
“We can’t just continue to shut off cheap reliable power and replace it with something that only shows up to work when they want to, we need reliable power generation to back our industries.”
NSW Senator Perin Davey added: “It is blindly hypocritical to preach net zero and block a zero-emission technology that can meet base load power requirements consistently and reliably – nuclear.”
“It is also hypocritical of us as a nation to be happy to export uranium but not use it ourselves. It is either safe for use or not.”
Nuclear power presents a safe, proven technology to improve Australia’s energy security. Australia is a global powerhouse when it comes to uranium production, possessing the world’s largest known resources of uranium. Australia also has a knowledgeable workforce, and proven nuclear industry run by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation.
Queensland Senator Susan McDonald said: “Investment in energy infrastructure needs to be driven by technology. It is ridiculous to deprive the Australian economy of new energy solutions, that are reliable, affordable and increasingly more efficient, simply because other forms of power-generation are more fashionable”.
Senator McMahon, representing the Northern Territory said, “The National Party Senators will not take a backwards step in ensuring our communities are ready for future energy challenges and opportunities.”
“I’ve been an advocate for lifting the ban on nuclear energy for some time, when it comes to emissions, reliability and power output, nuclear energy is way out in front and should be considered in the energy mix.”
Australia should maximise on these industries, and consider nuclear, including new small modular reactors, as a reliable, low cost, low emissions energy source for the Australia’s future.