Dozens of local residents and farmers have gathered in Devonport to protest against the development of Marinus Link and its associated onshore transmission upgrades in Tasmania’s north west – and in the hope of getting an audience with state energy minister, Nick Duigan.
The “Power Gathering” outside the 8th Annual Energy Development Conference on Tuesday was organised by Tas Power Democracy Inc. as a “peaceful, respectful meeting” for residents to express their “deep concern and opposition” to the state’s energy plans.
These concerns include not only the environmental damage and cost to taxpayers and energy consumers of the state’s roughly 5 gigawatt (GW) pipeline of renewable energy projects at various stages of the development pipeline, and the government’s handling of proposed developments.
Marinus Link – a nearly 350 km transmission line that will connect the power grids of Tasmania and Victoria, via the Bass Strait – was first announced by the Coalition Turnbull government in 2017.
Since then, the huge project has blown out in cost – from two, 750 megawatt (MW) cables priced at $1.3 billion to a single 750 MW cable priced at more than $3.5 billion – and attracted its fair share of controversy and criticism.
