Coal-Fired Power Stations

The majority voted in favour of a motion introduced by National Party Senator John Williams (NSW) also on behalf of National Party Senator Barry O'Sullivan (Qld), which means it succeeded. Motions like these don't make any legal changes on their own but are politically influential because they represent the will of the Senate.

Motion text

That the Senate notes that—

(a) throughout the world, 2440 coal-fired power stations with a capacity of at least 30 megawatts continue to provide a reliable source of energy;

(b) a further 270 coal-fired power stations of similar capacity are under construction;

(c) in its latest World Energy Outlook, the International Energy Agency (the Agency) estimates the growth in demand for coal in the Asia Pacific will increase by 492 million tonnes of coal equivalent by 2040;

(d) the Agency has forecast Australia's net exports of coal would grow by around 20% to around 430 million tonnes of coal equivalent by 2040;

(e) the Agency notes that, in Australia, in order to expand export volumes in the future, new basins and new transport infrastructure would need to be developed, including railway connections between new mines in the Galilee Basin in Queensland, such as Adani's Carmichael mine, and export ports; and

(f) the production and export of Australian high quality coal is good for jobs in regional Australia and the broader economy.