Coalition repitches ruinous nuclear policy for a different cause
Updated . First published at
The Coalition has repitched its nuclear policy for the booming data centre industry, despite the contentious energy sector being one of the reasons the party lost the last election so dramatically.
Nuclear energy is needed to support the growing number of data centres across Australia, Aaron Violi, the shadow science, technology and digital economy minister, told Sky News on Monday.
Liberal MP Aaron Violi with Opposition Leader Angus Taylor. Eamon Gallagher
“We literally don’t have enough renewable energy in this country to power the country and to power data centres,” he said.
Nuclear energy essentially produces zero emissions and can run non-stop all day, but concerns have been raised about its radioactive waste, the risk of a potential reactor meltdown and the billion-dollar price tag.
The Coalition ran its last election campaign on building seven nuclear reactors in Australia, which was partly behind its historic loss at the ballot box.
Violi defended revisiting nuclear as an energy option, pointing the finger at the government for creating a scare campaign and questioning why the nation cannot use the same resources it is exporting overseas.
“At the last election, the Labor Party ran a lie and a scare campaign talking about $600 billion in cost, which wasn’t true, by the way, it was a complete fabrication,” he said.
The Climate Council in June warned that data centre growth could increase power prices across the grid by more than 20 per cent by 2035 if it relies on fossil gas.
It said the impact to prices would be reduced if data centre growth was matched with new renewable energy.
The federal government has a memorandum for data centres that lays out five non-binding rules, including supporting the nation’s transition to renewable energy.
Companies must use clean energy generation, minimise their energy demand and improve the stability of the energy grid.
It comes as data centre energy use is estimated to triple from 2 per cent of electricity in the main grid in 2025 to 6 per cent by 2030, enough to power all the homes in Victoria, according to the Climate Council.
By 2050, data centres could use about 12 per cent of power on the grid.
Data centres are also expected to consume 17 gigalitres of water to help cool the facilities over the next five years.
A data centre in a suburb in Melbourne. Joe Armao
So far, there are an estimated 163 operational data centres across Australia and 90 proposed developments.
Australia is seeing a data centre investment boom after emerging as the second most attractive destination in the world for the facilities, behind the US.
The federal government has hailed data centres as an economic saviour and more impactful than the resources boom of the early 2000s.
“The immediate effect of the data centre rush is a shot in the arm for global economic growth,” Assistant Science, Technology and Digital Economy Minister Andrew Charlton said in June.
The Australian economy, which is suffering slow GDP growth, above-target inflation and the effects of the war in the Middle East, is being pulled by an investment in data centres.
Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Michele Bullock said data centres were part of the reason why the board was forecasting continued growth.
“Investment has been a bright spot recently, and growth is expected to continue in sectors of the economy with strong structural tailwinds, such as software, data centres and renewable energy,” she told the Senate in June.
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