Tasmania has a proud and longstanding history of renewable energy, beginning with our first major hydropower project in 1916. But this legacy can sometimes mask the reality that we are facing an energy crisis.
Unlike the crisis of 2016, our current challenge is driven by rising energy demand and the urgent need to decarbonise transport and industry. Today, only 42% of Tasmania’s total energy consumption comes from renewable sources; the remaining 58% is still reliant on fossil fuels such as petrol and diesel for transport, and coal and gas for heavy industry and businesses.
Our historic success in renewable electricity risks overshadowing the urgent need to upgrade aging infrastructure and prepare for the future. If we don’t invest now, our energy network will struggle to meet growing energy demand. Decarbonising Tasmania also remains a major task that requires investment.
Our community deserves a collaborative, forward-looking conversation that matches Tasmania’s environmental ambition with economic opportunity.
Our community deserves affordable energy and the power of choice.
Our community deserves more than the political theatre currently on offer.
If we don’t work together, we risk undermining the very identity that sets us apart: our clean, green brand. That legacy is worth protecting and building on.
