South Australia’s peak environment body has condemned yesterday’s comments by SA Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis at the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association conference in Adelaide.

MEDIA RELEASE
17 May 2023

Energy Minister’s Gas comments slammed

South Australia’s peak environment body has condemned yesterday’s comments by SA Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis at the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association conference in Adelaide.

The Minister is reported to have said ‘The South Australian government is at your disposal; we are here to help and we are here to offer you a pathway to the future.’

“Minister Koutsantonis’ comments are irresponsible and deeply disappointing,” said the Chief Executive of the Conservation Council of SA, Craig Wilkins.

“SA leads the world in wind and solar.  We have an extraordinarily exciting story to tell about our renewable energy transformation.

“Other countries are desperate to rapidly decarbonise using clean, renewable technology, and we’ve shown it can be done.

“That’s the story our Energy Minister should be focusing on, not bending over backwards to offer the welcome mat to an industry that is rapidly losing its social licence and its relevancy.

“The Minister’s comments are completely inconsistent with his government’s declaration of a climate emergency. It is also completely at odds with the desperate calls from international leaders such as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has said: ‘We must halt any expansion of existing oil and gas reserves and implement a global phase down of existing oil and gas production.’

“While gas has a small but rapidly declining role in our grid over the next couple of years, battery and other firming and storage technology is advancing so rapidly it will quickly become redundant," said Mr Wilkins.

“Any new exploration, or expansion of current reserves, is therefore not necessary to ensure we continue to decarbonise our electricity supply.

“Governments should be clearly telling gas industry players they need to transition rapidly away from digging up fossil fuels if they are to have a viable future," he said.

“Instead, the industry is in Adelaide at their annual talkfest seeking opportunities to explore for new resources to export overseas. And our government’s representative is cheering them on.

“In the meantime, every time we burn gas ­– whether it’s in SA or in another country – we make climate change worse.

“Our window to avert climate breakdown is rapidly closing.  We need our government to respond with responsibility and urgency, not offer support to an industry which is pouring more fuel on the fire,” he said.

RELEASE ENDS