NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell and Treasurer Mike Baird are facing a devil of a problem with the coal mine Kristina Keneally bequeathed them – and Julia Gillard should be aware that it bodes no long-term good for her domestic de-carbonisation plans either.
Cobbora is the name of the beast. And for O’Farrell and Baird, it is nothing but trouble.
It is being built between Dubbo and Mudgee and is intended to tip 9-11 million tonnes of coal a year into the NSW power stations’ boilers from 2015.
Without it, the mainstays of electricity security in the state – the two dozen coal-burning generation units operated by Macquarie Generation, Delta Electricity and Eraring Energy – are exposed to the world market for fuel in the second half of the decade, while consumers face higher wholesale energy prices.
Business Spectator
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