2016-06-07
The Australian Greens have welcomed plans from a second company working towards building a solar thermal plant in Port Augusta.
"It's fantastic to see a second solid proposal to build a solar thermal plant in Port Augusta. The world is seeing what the community and The Greens have seen for years: Port Augusta is on the cusp of being a renewables powerhouse," Greens Senator for South Australia Robert Simms said.
"South Australia is in a jobs crisis, and our future is in clean energy. Port Augusta has enormous potential for solar thermal, solar farms and wind power to create jobs of the future and keep the lights on for the state. To see the solar thermal spotlight on Port Augusta shine so brightly, on the day Sundrop Farm trucks out its first shipment of sustainably-grown tomatoes after its expansion, sends a clear message that this part of the country is ready to leave coal-fired power in the dust and move into a clean energy future.
"The Greens will continue to fight the Labor and Liberal unity ticket on making ARENA redundant; there is $1 billion available to get projects like this off the ground."
Senator Simms spoke about the Greens' plan to move SA to 100% renewable energy by 2030 at the Beyond Zero Emissions Renewable Energy Superpower report launch in Adelaide on Friday.