Australian P.M. Albanese Issues Transcript of News Conference in Townsville, Queensland

CANBERRA, Australia, Jan. 31 -- Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese issued the following transcript of a news conference on Jan. 30, 2024:

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ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Look it is fantastic to be back in Townsville, for my first visit for 2024. But certainly not my first visit to this wonderful city of Townsville, and here for this announcement, and it's also a bit of a relief that prior to this, we were able to meet the SES workers, the energy workers, the people who've been doing so much in working in partnership with the Council, with the Queensland Government, but also all those volunteers who are doing their bit to make a difference for the recovery from the cyclone. It is good that the anticipated damage is much less than what was thought could occur, but we know that there are still issues to be dealt with, including the cleanup. The Federal Government will provide our assistance for the cleanup, but we're also very relieved and congratulate all those people who've been involved in getting power will be back on to all homes today, which is an extraordinary effort in a short period of time. But here today, I'm joined by my ministers Chris Bowen and Nita Green, of course, who does a fantastic job in the Senate representing North Queensland, and also the Queensland Premier, of course, Steven Miles and members of his team, as well as Jenny Hill. We have the three levels of government all here, all united by supporting our vision for jobs and economic growth being driven for the entire region by this great city of Townsville. And it's also good that we're joined by John Cole, the CEO of Edify Energy. Look, this is an exciting project. Today we're announcing $70 million to build a major hydrogen hub for here in Townsville. This will create 200 direct jobs locally in construction when it is being built. Electricians, plumbers, fitters and turners, concreters, all getting work, as well as 300 ongoing technical and engineering jobs. This is good for Townsville, but it's good for the nation as well, because what potentially we have here with the hydrogen industry is some $50 billion potential of benefit to our national economy, driving our GDP, driving our economy into the future. The world global economy is changing. Australia needs to get at the front of that change in order to take advantage of the natural resources and the workforce that we have. And here in North Queensland, we know that we have all the minerals that will go into driving the economy this century. We have copper and cobalt and vanadium, we have lithium, we have nickel, we have all of these things. But we also have, as we're experiencing today, the best solar resources in the world. And those solar resources could drive green hydrogen. Drive green hydrogen so that we're lowering emissions, providing clean energy at the same time as we're driving in manufacturing as well. So, our vision for Townsville is a clean energy economy with jobs being created through green hydrogen and other products, making sure that we make things here in north Queensland as well through advanced manufacturing, making sure that this region continues to drive the economy. And that's what's so exciting about this project. I came here during the election campaign and announced our support for hydrogen and for it to be based here in North Queensland. As well as, of course, this is one of six regional hubs that we're creating, another one, of course, down in Gladstone, to our south. Queensland, as the most regional of states, has the most to gain by the transition. It will be an economic powerhouse in the future, even more so than it has been up to this point, continuing to export the resources that have brought prosperity and jobs to the region. But, as the economy transforms, being even more exciting for the future. So, I'm very pleased to be here. We're going to hear from Chris Bowen the Minister, then the Premier, then the Mayor, and then we'll hear from the CEO, and then we'll take some questions.

CHRIS BOWEN, MINISTER FOR CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENERGY: Thanks very much, Prime Minister. Well, the world's economy is going to increasingly rely on green hydrogen, and this announcement we're making today will mean that Townsville is prominent in the world map when it comes to green hydrogen production. This is an important announcement, as the Prime Minister said, and there's a couple of things about it which make me particularly excited. There's a $70 million commitment from the Albanese Government to make this hydrogen hub a reality. As the Prime Minister said, 200 immediate jobs and many more than that going forward on an ongoing basis. But also, as the world increasingly needs critical minerals, the world will be looking for those critical minerals to be processed in a way which is carbon neutral. And this hub will play a vital role, with Australia providing so much of the world's critical minerals needs in ensuring that we can tell customers right around the world that our critical minerals have been processed in a way which is carbon neutral. And we want to process more of those minerals in Australia under the Albanese Government, and we want to see a lot of that work happening here in Townsville. It's great for the Port of Townsville. The thing about green hydrogen is how you store renewable energy and it's how you can export it around the world. And when we build an export industry, the Port of Townsville, as part of this hub, will be one of the key places where we export that green hydrogen to, from, to not only Asia, but the rest of the world. And that's another thing which makes me particularly excited. This is a commitment and a partnership between all three levels of government, but to be honest, not just Australian governments. This is $70 million from the Albanese Government, also $27 million from the German Government out of a program I announced in Berlin in January with my Ministerial counterpart, Bettina Stark-Watzinger. This is what happens when a new government resets climate policy, brings Australia back to climate leadership and starts working with governments around the world. I've got to tell you, it's pretty unusual for a German Government to invest into Townsville projects. That's not something you'll see every day. That's a vote of confidence in Australia. Germany, one of the great industrial powerhouses of the world, knows they can't make their own green hydrogen, not enough of it. They need our help. And what we're announcing today is important because it'll mean Townsville jobs, powering Australia, powering Germany and powering the world. And finally, this is not just about the infrastructure. The other partners in this hub, James Cook University, Queensland Tafe, Townsville Enterprise Limited, ensuring that we're training Townsville workers for the jobs of the future. Hydrogen jobs are different jobs requiring different skills, and we want to ensure that those jobs that are created are filled by Townsville locals, and that Townsville locals have the training and skills needed and that's part of this hydrogen hub announcement we're making today. So, congratulations to Edify. This was a very competitive process, very strong bids. Edify came out as the best option for our country and best option for Townsville. Great news for Townsville's economy going forward. Great news for Australia's potential as a green energy superpower, the vision we have in the Albanese Government ,and Townsville right at the centre of it.

STEVEN MILES, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Well, it's amazing what we can achieve when all three levels of government share the same vision. And I know that Jenny and the Prime Minister and I are all absolutely determined that Townsville has the clean energy jobs of the future. Townsville is ideally located. It has this fantastic Port, proximity to some of the world's best renewable energy resources, high voltage transmission that will be bolstered with the CopperString project, a highly skilled workforce and, of course, all of those critical minerals that the world is demanding. And by using our renewables and renewables stored as hydrogen, we can protect our existing industries, protect jobs in existing energy intensive industries, and attract new energy intensive industries to our State to right here in Townsville. And of course, we can help our trading partners like Germany to decarbonise their economy by sharing our renewable energy with them in the form of hydrogen. This is all about protecting existing blue collar jobs here in Townsville, and attracting more of them, and it is an example of what Jenny and I and the Prime Minister are able to deliver by working together on our shared vision.

JENNY HILL, MAYOR OF TOWNSVILLE: Thank you. There's a lot of hard work that goes into developing projects like this and this is really 20 years in the making. I was Chair of Planning when Council bought the land under Tony Mooney with the vision of creating an industrial precinct. I want to be able to deliver that to the Townsville community, but moreover, it's about making sure we deliver something that will have longevity. Now, John Cole is a local boy, grew up in Townsville, went to Iggy Park and made his way in the world and has done really well. He believes in what we're trying to do here in North Queensland and he's come back here to help us achieve that, which is to establish an eco-industrial precinct that does create blue collar jobs, the jobs that are the heart and soul of this community. I mean, I look around and what I'm trying to do is ensure the next generation has jobs like my husband, who is, by and large began life as a fitter out of the army. They're the heart and soul of this community and they're the things we're trying to do here. In 2016, when we lost QNI, we saw the impact on this community. Today we've got more jobs than we have unemployed, and I want to see Townsville stay in that position. But I want to tell the rest of Australia, you don't have to live in Sydney to have a good paying job. I want to tell those people in Melbourne, if you really want to work in new industries that matter, look north. Get out of those cold climates, get out of those homes that you can't afford to buy, and come and live in North Queensland because guys like John are going to have a job for you in the future. And I want to thank all three levels of government. I was lamenting to the Prime Minister that one of the pieces of infrastructure that is important for this project is the Port Access Road. He delivered that for us when he was Minister for infrastructure. Man, these projects don't happen just because we think it's a good idea. They happen because everyone thinks it's a good idea.

JOHN COLE, CEO OF EDIFY ENERGY: Thank you very much. I don't know really much to add. I agree with everything. They're a hard act to follow. We've got a cracking project, we've got very good technology. We really enjoy moments like this and funding announcements. But the thing that gives us the most pleasure is actually breaking ground, getting the thing built, and so we're very committed to delivering that. The collaboration across all levels of government here is very important and we thank everybody for the support. The German Government angle is one that Townsville shouldn't also underappreciate. It is a massive vote of confidence for this region. I've been saying for more years than I care to remember, that it's North Queensland's to lose this hydrogen opportunity. It is just immense. You need bulk electricity and bulk water to create bulk hydrogen. And we have electricity on the CopperString network in the northwest minerals province. We've got the Burdekin Dam, we have the Port of Townsville. It is just up to people like us. We can't do it our own, but other industry participants working with Government to bring that all together. But it's something that is definitely deliverable, and it's coming faster than we think. A nod to the Federal Government, I think, on the policy level. I think you've got it right Minister, Prime Minister. We have set up hubs, these hydrogen projects won't mushroom everywhere like renewable energy projects so, you do need a hub. So, that's great. We've got the guarantee of origin scheme for the provenance of the hydrogen, that's fundamentally important. The collaboration with the Germany HyGATE Initiative and then the revenue underwrite through Headstart. And when you put all those things together, it'll always be bigger, but you put it together, it's a very attractive package that will get investors, and help us deliver to this superpower vision that I'm truly bought into.

PRIME MINISTER: Thanks very much, John. Can I just add one thing about our friends in Germany, because I don't think it should be underestimated. I went to Germany at the invitation of Chancellor Scholz last year and one of the things we did there was to hold a forum at the Australian Embassy there in Berlin with leading businesses in Germany. Bear in mind that Germany is Europe's largest economy. The German economy is as large as France and Italy combined. Second and third. It's a big deal. I took about 20 questions from leading businesses when I was there in Germany at this forum. About 18 of them were about hydrogen, were about green hydrogen. So, one of the things that we know when we look at the automotive industry, when we look at electronics, is that Germany has led the world in so many areas over recent decades. They know when they identify a way forward, they're onto something. And the fact that they're investing here is a credit to you, John, but it's also a credit to Australia and where we're positioned, because one of the big advantages that we have when it comes to green hydrogen is literally space. There is 12,000 solar panels attached on this drawing that you see here about the future construction, but that's small compared with the rest that is happening. So, we have a huge comparative advantage in the industries of the future, and that's why this is so exciting. Happy to take questions.

JOURNALIST: Prime Minister are you concerned that PNG and China are in early negotiations over a potential security deal and do you intend to raise this issue with Prime Minister Marape when he visits Canberra?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, PNG of course, is a sovereign Government, but it's a sovereign Government that has no closer friend than Australia. Prime Minister Marape will be visiting Australia in coming weeks and will be the first Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea to address our Australian Parliament on February 8th. That will be an exciting time. And in December, we signed our security agreement between Australia and PNG. We are the security partner of choice for Papua New Guinea, as we are for most of the countries in the Pacific. We're family and we'll continue to engage. And I very much look forward to welcoming the Prime Minister to Australia. We have provided recently support for Papua New Guinea in issues such as police training, and I've been in regular contact with the Prime Minister. He sent a lovely text message and letter to me on Australia Day, on our national day, and that's the sort of friendship that we have.

JOURNALIST: Just a question from our Canberra Bureau. The Opposition is apparently split on whether to support your tax cuts. Why should they?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, they're all over the shop, aren't they? That's the truth. And we have a plan that we will put to the parliament of every Australian taxpayer getting a tax cut. People on average incomes getting double what they were going to get before. So, when you look at Australia's largest Barracks here that I visited, overwhelmingly those fine men and women who serve in our uniform will get double the tax benefit. People here in Townsville across the electorate of Herbert, 68,000 more people are going to get a bigger tax cut than if this change does not occur. And for locals, that means $1,535 more in people's pockets. That's $1,500 that's being spent in small businesses, creating jobs and economic activity here in Herbert. Eight seven percent of people living in Townsville and surrounds will get more this July as a result of this change. And we know that the Coalition talk a lot about cost of living pressures, but they vote against all of them. They voted against cheaper medicines, they voted against cheaper childcare, they voted against our energy price relief plan we put in place in partnership with the Queensland Government. They deride the 300,000 fee free TAFE places that we have. And they're so addicted to saying no to everything that Sussan Ley, her first response was to say that they were going to fight it and they were against it. They didn't know what it was, it was before the announcement. And then after they found out what it was, she said that the Coalition would roll it back, that is that they would go to the next election calling for higher taxes for 12 million Australians. And those 12 million Australians, low and middle income earners, are the big beneficiary. We've targeted this fairly and squarely at middle Australia, but as well, we've made sure that everyone gets a tax cut so that those people earning under $45,000 a year are not left behind.

JOURNALIST: The $10 billion reinsurance scheme just hasn't worked. Would you support calls for insurance companies to share their data with the public, with the community and the Queensland Government? What else needs to happen for insurance companies to be above board and work with the community?

PRIME MINISTER: Well of course, before the election the Coalition made some big promises about insurance and it hasn't resulted in what they said it would do before the 2019 election and afterwards. And the member for Leichhardt made some big promises and commitments as well about the impact. We think transparency is always a good idea and we will continue to work through our Minister, Murray Watt, another great Queenslander who was here just days ago, to make sure that people are looked after. People who have insurance should get their payouts. People need to be looked after. I think that's what Australians expect, and that's what people in Queensland expect as well.

JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, obviously we've had some pretty wild weather over the last couple of months up here in the north and now there's some more weather concerns in the southeast. Can we expect to see any more federal funding when it comes to supporting this region?

PRIME MINISTER: We're constantly putting in federal funding into this region. And even with the incidents that's occurred over the weekend, we're providing support for local government here in partnership with, of course, the State Government. When Queenslanders need the Federal Government's help, they will receive it.

JOURNALIST: Do you find it more concerning as these events keep coming?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, the science told us that climate change would result in more extreme weather events and more intense extreme weather events. And unfortunately, that's what we're seeing playing out and that's why addressing climate change is so important. That's why this bloke, this Minister, is acting every single day to make a difference to emissions, but doing it in a way that he's working with the Queensland Government, working with local Government to do it in a way that at the same time is seizing the opportunity to create jobs. The great tragedy of the lost decade of the coalition, and we saw in the Nemesis program last night, we saw what occurred under the first few years of the Coalition government. The dysfunction, the chaos, the fighting of each other was their focus. They concentrated on fighting each other, we're fighting for Australians. That is what we are doing each and every day. And we're doing that by addressing climate change, by being a part of global solutions, negotiating through those issues, but also by seizing the opportunities which are there as well. Because we think there are positive opportunities by addressing the challenge of climate change.

JOURNALIST: Kirrily was only a category one or a category two, we were out of power for three full days and for some people it's still going. Are we ready for a category four or five here and if not what are you going to do about it by the next season?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, one of the things that occurred prior to Kirilly crossing the coast was an enormous amount of preparation. I want to pay tribute to the Mayor for what Townsville Council did in the lead up. I spoke to the mayor, I of course, also spoke to my friend, the Premier. And there's enormous amount of preparation work and I think that did assist. There were some power lines down, there was an impact of this, but it was better than what was anticipated. But still there's damage to homes, there was power cut for a period of time. But I've got to say this as someone who's not a Queenslander, that Queensland did the right thing by keeping its electricity in public hands. Because one of the things that I've seen here in Cairns, in Townsville, in Wujal Wujal, right around where I've been with the Premier, is wherever we've gone together you see an extraordinary effort done, mobilized, because of the workforce, but also just a tribute. When I was in Cairns, I met Townsville, people from the SES and others up there helping their fellow Australians. Once again, at the worst of times, we see the best of the Australian character. I don't know if Steve wants to add anything there.

PREMIER MILES: After every event, we analyse exactly what has happened and look for if there are opportunities to build back, better to embed resilience into our infrastructure. We will do that after Tropical Cyclone Kirrily. We'll talk with Jenny, we'll talk with the Australian Government, and if there are opportunities to reinforce our electricity network, then we will take those opportunities. I know that our electricity companies, as the Prime Minister pointed out, state owned electricity companies, they're able to put the interests of the community first, over and above paying profits to shareholders. And so that's a great opportunity for us. I think they did an incredible job getting the power back on so quickly. We know that many of the outages were caused by the power lines from the street to the house going down from local vegetation. There's probably work we can do there with individual households to make sure that they're keeping trees away from those lines.

JOURNALIST: On Callide, the mine, Judge Derrington, has slammed the delays in getting Callide back online, and administrators attempts to understand what went wrong. What do you make of these comments?

PREMIER MILES: I look, I know that our Energy Minister and the operators of the Callide power plant have been working as hard as they can to get that generator back online just as quickly as they can. It went down at the time of global supply chain issues which have impacted on those timeframes as well as the partnership there having financial difficulties. So look, we'll continue to work to get it back online just as quickly as we can, while ensuring that the rest of our generation assets continue to deliver sufficient supply to meet demand. That's our focus. And again, we're able to do that because we own these assets. If that generator had been privatised, like the LNP wanted to it would not be being built back right now.

JOURNALIST: Can you tell us why the Brady Report hasn't been released?

PREMIER MILES: The Energy Minister I understand will be available to answer more detailed questions later today

JOURNALIST: Regarding the Transport and Resources Committee into Energy Bills being held in Rocky today, the LNP says the State Government's rush to renewables is damaging the environment, it's dividing communities. What's your response? And what is the benefit of renewables?

PREMIER MILES: Well, the LNP's ideological opposition to renewables is bad for Queensland. It's bad for places like Townsville and Rockhampton, because these are the places where existing industries will benefit from being able to access clean, stored renewable energy. They will be able to export their products to the world with a stamp on them that says that they are processed and manufactured using one hundred per cent renewable energy generated here in Queensland. And they will be able to promote their cities to the world looking for investors wanting to have access to that renewable power. The LNP are a risk to that plan. The LNP won't say if they support our plan to convert to renewable energy. They opposed when we said we wanted to get fifty per cent renewable energy by 2030 - they opposed it. They said we couldn't do it. They said the lights wouldn't be on. Well, we're going to meet that target in 2028, two years early. That's the kind of things that you can achieve when you own your electricity assets. And when you have a vision for your economy, and that vision is at risk because of the LNP's ideological opposition to renewables

JOURNALIST: On the weather situation in Brisbane, we're seeing water rescues and home flooding. Can you give us a bit of an update on the situation?

PREMIER MILES: I can. I've been in constant contact with the state disaster coordinator this morning. He has stood up the State Disaster Coordination Center. We've seen very heavy rain overnight and continuing this morning. Some areas saw upwards of thirty-five centimeters of rain overnight, places like Samford. That has resulted in localised flash flooding. I understand that in Laidley the river broke its banks, it's over the bridge. It has peaked now though and it peaked with about six or eight inches of water through the CBD, the main street and about three or four blocks back. I've been in contact with the Mayor and she's told me that the waters there are receding. In Brisbane there has been some localised flash flooding but it's been more concentrated in the Moreton Bay area. There's about fifteen houses in Bray Park that flooded. As I said Samford got a lot of rain. The Samford Road is closed at the moment due to a landslip. There's Morayfield shopping center is inundated, and I'm told it's raining right now and that flash flooding could get worse. So really, our message, particularly if you're in Moreton Bay, is please take care. And certainly if the road is flooded, forget it, do not drive on it.

JOURNALIST: After so many weather events, the community is exhausted, no doubt emergency services too. Are you relying on any interstate support?

PREMIER MILES: Not at this stage, but we do know that the other states and indeed the Albanese Government will respond quickly, when we make those requests for assistance. We had, I think it was about one hundred and fifty staff from other states that were provided to us, pre-positioned here in Townsville prior to tropical cyclone Kirrily. So they're the kinds of resources that were able to call upon really quickly and have them available to support our emergency services. We do know they are tired. Many have been working since mid-December and so we need to take care of them, make sure that they do get breaks. And the way we do that is by relying on other states and the Australian Government. Of course we return those favors when other states have their disaster seasons.

JOURNALIST: Just quickly on the hydrogen project. Obviously, very exciting thing like this attracts a lot of people to the region. We've already tonnes of people come up here recently, and we've got a lot of the military coming up. Where all these people are going to live? And what have the discussions been between all three branches of government about where actually the houses for these people to stay are going to be?

MAYOR HILL: This is a beauty. We've got, as you know, we've got a plan with North Yards. We have a separate business of council operating there. At the moment they're in discussions with the State Government around some support and they're trying to talk to Defence Housing to see if they'd be interested as well. Can I say we want Defence here, we just need defence housing to get the skates on and make decisions and Prime Minister that's one of our biggest bugbears at the moment. So yeah, now on the project, I want to throw a challenge out to those guys and girls to get out of their studio in Melbourne is it predominantly. They never seem to move anywhere else outside of Australia, but live in the Melbourne bubble. Get the friggin hell off your asses come and travel north and see what the rest of Australia is like. And stop trying to tell us how to run our lives. So tell them that from me

PRIME MINISTER: On that note we might conclude. I just want to make the point I love Townsville, I want to also make the point I love Melbourne. And my job is to love the entire country. And now we're off to Rockhampton, which I also love. But I do want to conclude by just giving a shout out again to those workers, whether they be council workers, state, defence, my federal officials. But a particular shout out to the volunteers and those who aren't formal volunteers either. One of the things that happens at times like this, is you'll have people looking after their neighbours who can't help themselves. You just see the best of the Australian character. It makes me incredibly proud to be the Prime Minister of this greatest country on Earth when I see how people respond in times of adversity. Thanks very much.

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Original text here: https://www.pm.gov.au/media/press-conference-townsville-queensland