SENATOR TIM AYRES, MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND INNOVATION AND MINISTER FOR SCIENCE: Well, I’m absolutely delighted to have heard the news yesterday, that Rio Tinto and Hydro Tasmania have reached a deal to extend their power purchasing agreement for 12 months. I'm really pleased with the work led by the Tasmanian Premier, Jeremy Rockliff, working through making sure, that this power purchasing agreement is reached in the interest of Tasmania, in the interest of Tasmanians, and in the interests of the Australian aluminium industry. Here with Jess Tessdale the Member for Bass, who has been, assiduous, working with me to make sure that I'm hearing the voices of the local Tasmanians on the importance of this facility. The ingredients to securing the competitive future for these facilities will always be the Commonwealth and the States working together to discharge their responsibilities in the national interest and the firms and the energy providers working together to secure the most competitive deal in the interests of Australians. So, I'm really pleased that this work has continued on, we will continue, in the Albanese Government, to watch this process very carefully, to engage with Tasmania, to engage with the owners at this facility in Rio Tinto. This is 550 local jobs, 300 local businesses that rely on this facility. Blue collar jobs in Northen Tasmania, every one of them is precious, we are going to keep working with Tasmania in lockstep on this facility and a range of other facilities. I'll hand over to Jess Tessdale, who will make a few comments. 

JESS TESSDALE MP: Thank you, Minister. We know that Rio Tinto has been in production in Northern Tasmania for more than 70 years. This is the heartland for us in Bass and in Northen Tasmania for good well-paid jobs. This is a welcomed reprieve for those families, workers and for the contractors that deal with the site. We are thinking of you over Christmas we are looking forward to the Tasmanian government, Hyrdo Tasmania working with Rio over the next 12 months to make sure we don’t come to this situation again, where things become a little tight, and uncertain. We want to make sure the families are happy, and they are our priority. Thank you.

JOURNALIST: [Inaudible]…what is the long term for you, will the Commonwealth inevitably be involved? 

AYRES: Well, we want to use these 12 months, use every day to deliver a long-term future for this facility. The energy questions are of course pressing on this facility, and I want to see further investment, I want to see the firm and Tasmania working together for a strong pathway through that delivers a 10- and 15-year horizon with a credible and competitive power purchasing agreement. I have always on this question. Said very carefully not to point fingers to jurisdictions, together we will need to work our way through these questions, and it has been Tasmania, taking responsibility for the publicly owned electricity generator there and its power purchasing agreement with Rio Tinto that has secured 12 months. I can’t predict what is going to happen over those 12 months but I have used the 6 months that I have had thus far to work in a disciplined way through each of these big blue collar facilities that are important for Australia’s industrial capability and I will continue to do that. 

JOURNALIST: What role did the Federal Government play in securing this deal?

AYRES: Well, I've been very careful and congratulatory in my comments today. I have, of course, been engaged with the Premier and the relevant Ministers over the course of the last 6 months. I have been very clear with them, and with Rio Tinto and Hydro Tas, that the responsibility for securing this power purchase agreement lies with them. That is not easy work, and they have applied themselves to that in a really diligent and disciplined way, and I'm delighted with the progress that that made thus far. 

JOURNALIST: How are things going with Tomago and NSW Government, were your comments pointed at the New South Wales Government?

AYRES: Well, of course, each of these facilities is different. The Tomago facility is there, because there was a publicly owned generator, providing concessionally priced, already cheap electricity through the 20th century, from 1984, all the way through to when that when electricity was privatised in New South Wales. Not something that I supported at the time, for this very reason. The publicly owned generator was there to act in the public interest. That's what's happened in Tasmania. That means that Tomago Aluminium is in a challenging environment. We are working very closely with them, very closely with the New South Wales Government. We will not leave any stone untuned. I don't want to predict what the coming weeks are going to deliver. The future there is uncertain. The company's been really clear with their workforce about that. I am determined to use every tool at my disposal to try and shape the right future of the Hunter economy, including a viable commercial aluminium smelter.

JOURNALIST: Would you acknowledge an energy problem, with two smelters facing an uncertain future, energy prices are too high for aluminium?

AYRES: Well, energy prices are part of the challenge and it was always going to be the case, that it was going to be a challenge after a decade of disinvestment in our electricity system. 24 out of 28 coal fired power stations announced their closure with nothing new being built. That energy was going to be a challenge, and we are working through those questions. But to add to that, a volatile trade environment, particularly for aluminium and steel products and all those questions mean that there's a responsibility for us to work these issues through. We're going to keep on the case, I am absolutely committed to all these facilities, the future is uncertain, but we're getting on with the job. 

JOUNRALIST: Are you confident that the settings of the Green Aluminium Production Credit are set right to achieve that?

AYRES: Yeah, we are in design. They are absolutely designed to support future investment in aluminium capability and future investment in renewable energy. We're seeing that happen very successfully in Queensland. We're going to keep working through these issues. 

JOURNALIST: Does Bell Bay get that aluminium production credit?

AYRES: Tasmania has been producing green energy since 1953. It's one of the sources of competitive advantage. A publicly owned hydro powered industrial past for Tasmania should mean a publicly owned industrial future for Tasmania. We will keep working with the Tasmanian government on all these questions. There are other facilities that are facing challenges in Tasmania, that have got nothing to do with energy, and all to do with a lack of investment from their owners, we are going to keep pushing through on these industrial challenges.