Economy
STATE: Bad News Trainwreck for Good News Matthew
*Pic: ABC pic of Matthew Groom
THURSDAY February 25 …
• Mercury: Basslink back-up fast-tracked
Tasmania Talks with Brian Carlton, 17 February 2016, http://www.7ad.com.au/tasmania-talks
COMPERE BRIAN CARLTON: …we did contact the Premier’s office to see whether there was any formal response to the calls from the opposition leader, the Labor leader in this state Bryan Green, for the Energy Minister Matthew Groom to either resign or be sacked.
During that commercial break we received a call from the Minister Matthew Groom, whom I have on the line now. Minister Groom are you calling to announce your resignation?
ENERGY MINISTER MATT GROOM: Uh, certainly not Brian, certainly not. And again, unfortunately, what we’re seeing from Bryan Green is a, um, willingness to spend all his time throwing rocks and engaging in frankly political distraction for his own political purposes while the state is dealing with a very difficult circumstance, and I…
CARLTON: Yes indeed it is. Why is he wrong though Matthew? Why is he wrong?
GROOM: Well, this suggestion that I have misrepresented the government’s position is absolutely wrong. As I indicated yesterday Brian, the government did not consent to the sale of the Tamar Valley Power Station.
What had occurred was that Hydro Tasmania had put a proposal forward to explore the potential sale of the combined cycle unit, one of the units present at the site. The government had considered that and agreed to allow Hydro to explore it, but subject to very strict conditions, including that we be satisfied on energy security matters.
Now, Hydro never presented a divestment proposal that satisfied those conditions, so…
CARLTON: But hang on a sec Minister, Minister just, with respect, I’ve got the document in front of me. It’s a media release from your office dated 12th of August 2015. This is a direct quote from it:
“the government has today given approval for Hydro Tasmania to decommission and sell the combined cycle gas turbine”
end quote. Your words.
GROOM: Yeah, well, as I say Brian, what the government actually did was we provided a consent to Hydro Tasmania to explore the potential sale…
CARLTON: No sir, that’s…again, with respect Minister Groom, that is not what your media release says.
GROOM: Uh, well Brian, what I am telling you is what actually happened…
CARLTON: Well Minister then, then, then did you lie before? Is the 12th of August 2015 media release inaccurate too?
GROOM: No, no, no, certainly not. Brian, what I am telling you is what actually happened here. What happened was that Hydro Tasmania proposed the potential sale of the combined cycle unit.
The government considered that and provided a consent to Hydro Tasmania to explore that potential sale, subject to very strict conditions, and they included that the government be satisfied on energy security matters.
Now, Hydro Tasmania never presented a divestment proposal back to the government that satisfied those conditions….
CARLTON: Okay, hang on, okay. Minister, I’m afraid you may be straying into the kind of territory that has already got you into trouble, okay, a couple of times.
Let me just continue reading from a release from your office dated 12 August 2015, “the government” … this is a direct quote, it’s kinda long, bear with me.
“The government has today given approval for Hydro Tasmania to decommission and sell the combined cycle gas turbine. This will allow Hydro to rid itself of a redundant liability and reduce its debt. Hydro operates in a highly dynamic and competitive market. This government will support Hydro in its efforts to be right at the forefront of power generators in Australia, and to deliver on the historic investment in Hydro that generations of Tasmanians have made. Hydro Tasmania has consulted with staff and unions today about the changes, and providing appropriate support. Hydro Tasmania will seek to maximize redeployment opportunities through this period, and minimize job losses. The government remains focused on implementing the Tasmanian energy strategy, and once again making energy a competitive advantage in order to deliver the lowest sustainable electricity prices, and ensure business can operate in a competitive environment.”
end quote. There is nothing in that about energy security Minister, with respect.
GROOM: Yeah, and what I’m telling you Brian is what actually happened. What actually happened is…
CARLTON: The public only know what actually happened Minister Groom when they read a media release that’s turned around into a newspaper item or an interview like this.
GROOM: Yes. Brian, the government made no secret of the fact that we had agreed to allow Hydro Tasmania to explore this potential sale…
CARLTON: That’s not what your media release says sir, again, I’m going … [Groom protesting] … no, no, Minister, please, please. What you’re doing now is you are trying to backpedal on an issue where you have clearly been caught out.
GROOM: No. What I’m trying to do Brian is to tell you the facts. I’m trying to tell you the facts. And what happened…
CARLTON: So there are two sets of facts in Tasmania are there Minister? There are the facts that occurred behind the scene and in your office, and then there’s another set of facts that are presented to the public via a media release from your office?
GROOM: Well, what I’m telling you are the facts Brian. The facts are that Hydro Tasmania sought approval for the exploring of the potential sale of the combined cycle unit, the government considered it, and it agreed to allow Hydro to explore that but subject to very strict…
CARLTON: Minister, minister, again, I’ve got the media release in front of me from your office, dated 12 August 2015. It makes no mention of either of those things, and it says quite succinctly
“the government has today given approval for Hydro Tasmania to decommission and sell the combined gas cycle turbine”
Just, bear with a minute Minister if I can, this is what you said on the show yesterday:
[recording of Groom]: “in the context of the Tamar Valley Power Station, the government did not consent to the sale of it.”
CARLTON: Well, there you go, ‘did not consent’. Now what is it? How can those two terms co-exist? ‘The government has today given approval for Hydro Tasmania to decommission and sell’…[Groom talking]
GROOM: Well Brian, Brian, you miss the point that I’m making to you. We did not consent to the sale of the combined cycle unit…and we will be releasing information today that supports the point that I am making to you. I am talking about what actually happened, what actually happened…
CARLTON: Okay, so Minister, Minister, you either misled my audience yesterday, or you misled all of Tasmania on the 12th of August 2015 when you issued a media release that you are now saying is inaccurate.
GROOM: Well Brian what I am doing is I’m telling you the facts, and what I said yesterday is consistent with the facts. We made no secret of the fact that Hydro Tasmania wanted to explore the potential sale of the combined cycle unit…
CARLTON: Yes, for which you gave approval.
GROOM: No, the government did not give approval to the sale, what it did is…
CARLTON: So why should the people of Tasmania…[Groom talking] Minister Groom, Minister Groom, why should the people of Tasmania believe anything that comes out of your office by way of a media release, any kind of public statement on any issue of public importance, when you are backtracking on something that you’ve said, how many months ago now…six months ago?
GROOM: Well I’m not backtracking Brian, what I’m…
CARLTON: Yes you are!
GROOM: …what I’m doing is giving you the facts, and the facts are that Hydro sought permission to explore it, the government agreed to allow that to happen subject to strict conditions, including it be satisfied from an energy security perspective.
CARLTON: There’s nothing in the media release…[Groom talking]…there’s nothing in the media release that says anything about energy security Mr Groom. Nothing.
GROOM: Yeah and, no, and I understand the point you’re making. But what I’m doing…
CARLTON: I’m not sure you do.
GROOM: …what I’m doing is giving you the facts. I’m giving you the facts Brian and the fact is that we imposed strict conditions on Hydro Tasmania. They never presented a divestment proposal that satisfied those conditions…
CARLTON: Sir, that’s not the issue with respect.
GROOM: The combined cycle unit was not sold and as a consequence it is now up and running and performing at full capacity for the benefit of the Tasmanian people. And Brian, in order to just ensure we’ve got a full record of what transpired here, if you want to talk about inconsistency and hypocrisy…
CARLTON: Oh no, hang on a sec now, hang on Minister Groom. I know when I’m about to be lured into a typical political tactic, which is to then turn the attack around on you, into an attack on the person who is making an attack on you.
I would prefer to deal with the issues of substance. And the issue of substance is, you issued a media release of the 12th of August 2015 which you are now saying was not true.
GROOM: Well what I’m doing…
CARLTON: Out of your own words, your own words Minister! Your own words condemn you.
GROOM: … what I’m doing Brian is I’m giving you the facts, and the fact is the government did not consent to the sale, what it did was…
CARLTON: Right. So the media release on the 12th of August was a lie was it Minister? That’s what you’re saying.
GROOM: Well, I, you know, I mean, you can try and describe it in that way…
CARLTON: Which is, no, no Minister, which is the lie…Minister, with respect, which is the lie?
GROOM: You can try and describe it in that way if you want Brian, but I am giving you the facts, and the fact is…
CARLTON: But you are completely, you are completely contradicting your own media release from the 12th of August.
GROOM: Well the fact is, the government did not consent to sell the combined cycle unit, it did impose strict conditions, including that it be satisfied from an energy security position, and…
CARLTON: Right, so you just conveniently left that off the media release did you? Why?
GROOM: …and, and Hydro Tasmania did not present a divestment proposal to the government that satisfied those conditions. But Brian, I do…
CARLTON: Yeah. look, it’s a nice line worked up by the spin doctors in your party Mr Groom, but…
GROOM: Oh look I reject that Brian, but I do have to make the point that Mr Green himself was quoted in December 2014 in an article in The Examiner newspaper as saying that the then Labor Government would have jumped at the chance to sell the plant.
They were his quotes, as quoted in The Examiner newspaper, so I think it is very disingenuous for Mr Green to be out there suggesting hypocrisy from the government’s perspective, when he himself made it clear on the public record that he was willing to sell that plant.
CARLTON: Minister Groom, the allegation he is making is far more serious than hypocrisy, with respect. He is suggesting you have misled the people of Tasmania.
GROOM: Well Brian I…
CARLTON: And on the prima facie evidence minister, you have.
GROOM: Well I have sought at all times to provide people with the facts. I have sought at all times to do that and what I am saying to you Brian, in terms of what actually happened here, was that, uh, Hydro Tasmania sought permission to explore the potential sale of the combined cycle unit at the plant.
The government considered that, and it agreed to allow Hydro Tasmania to explore it, subject to strict conditions…
CARLTON: No, well look, you’re saying that now minister, you’re saying that now, but you did not say that when you made the announcement on the 12th of August 2015.
Okay, lets move, seeing as though you were talking about claim versus counter-claim here. On the 22nd of December this year, two days after the Basslink announcement was made that the interconnector was down, the, the following quote from you:
“Hydro continues to be in a position to meet Tasmania’s energy needs, and that continues to be the case even without the Tamar Valley combined cycle unit.”
I move down to the 15th of January, 26 days later, where you spoke to the Tasmanian small business council, and you said the following:
“the previous approval for Hydro Tasmania to consider such a sale has been withdrawn by the government.”
Now you’re telling me that you withdrew something that you never gave them in the first place?
GROOM: Well, the consent for them to explore, the consent for them to explore the potential sale was withdrawn, and that was…
CARLTON: No, the previous, the quote from… [Groom continues talking] oh minister!
GROOM: …and the government, immediately upon learning about the Basslink…
CARLTON: No sir, again, not true! Not true minister, you’re just making stuff up again and this is what gets you into trouble.
GROOM: Well it is true Brian. It is true.
CARLTON: No. On the 22nd of December you said we do not need, we do not need the Tamar Valley combined cycle unit, two days after the Basslink announcement was made, and then 26 days later you have then come out and said the previous approval for Hydro Tasmania to consider such a sale has been withdrawn by the government.
You’re now telling me, or trying to tell me and my audience, that you never gave that consent in the first place, and yet your own statement says you withdrew it.
GROOM: Well the, the consent for Hydro Tasmania to explore the potential sale…
CARLTON: No sir, no, read your own media releases minister.
“The previous approval for Hydro Tasmania to consider such a sale has been withdrawn by the government.”
Minister, I’m at the point now where I’m getting exasperated because you’re now telling further porkies that are complicating the earlier one you [indistinct].
GROOM: Well it’s not true Brian, it’s not true, and if you let me just work through this process. The statement that I made immediately upon learning of the outage of the Basslink cable was based on advice that we had at the time.
Hydro Tasmania, as soon as they became aware of the circumstances with respect to rainfall, made a prudent decision to commence the process for returning the combined cycle unit to operation. That happened in November. That was an appropriate response.
The advice that we got immediately upon learning of the outage of the Basslink cable, based on the information at that time, was that it was not required at that point from an energy security perspective, but obviously they were well underway in terms of returning that plant to operation.
That was a prudent thing to do, Hydro had acted entirely appropriately in those circumstances…
CARLTON: Well nobody’s suggesting Hydro behaved in any other way than appropriately minister. Nobody’s suggesting that.
GROOM: Yes, and, and so then what happened was, immediately upon learning of the outage we discussed this issue with Hydro Tasmania and we made it clear to them that the previous consent that the government had given for them to explore the potential sale of the combined cycle unit was withdrawn. That’s what happened…
CARLTON: Minister, minister, I have the timeline sitting in front of me. You did that on the 15th of January, 26 days after Basslink went down.
GROOM: No, no, yeah, no that’s not true. We, we had discussions with Hydro Tasmania at the time of the outage and we made it clear at that point that we were not comfortable with them continuing to proceed with the exploring of that potential sale. That’s what we made clear.
Now what you’re talking about was a public comment that was quoted in the newspaper that happened some time later. But those discussions were immediate Brian and…
CARLTON: So you just speak to, you say whatever you want to depending on the audience you’re talking to?
GROOM: Well no, that’s not true Brian. I mean, these things have got their own context. You need to understand the context, and what I’m saying to you is that immediately upon learning of the outage of the cable we made it clear to Hydro Tasmania we were not comfortable with them continuing to proceed with the potential exploring of the sale of the…
CARLTON: What date, what date are you claiming there sir? What date?
GROOM: Well those discussions happened on the day we confirmed the outage.
CARLTON: Which was the 20th of December.
GROOM: Well, the 22nd, when they confirmed [indistinct] in fact a substantial outage of the Basslink cable.
CARLTON: Okay…alright…here’s… [Groom continues speaking]…here’s a…sir? Sir? Mr Groom. A media release from your office dated 22 December 2015, two days after Basslink. Okay?
GROOM: Yeah, but that’s…
CARLTON: Hydro, Hydro [both speaking] no, please let me read:
“Hydro continues to be in a position to meet Tasmania’s energy needs and that continues to be the case even without the Tamar Valley combined cycle unit.”
Your words, your office, 22 December.
GROOM: That’s right and they were, that was the advice that we had at the time. But what Hydro had done sometime before that, before the outage, was they had made the prudent judgment, because of the change in circumstances, to return the combined cycle unit to operation. That process commenced in November.
But the advice that we had immediately upon learning of the outage of the Basslink cable was that we were in a position to meet our energy requirements. At that time the estimated return to operation date was in February, and the advice that we had at that time was that it was not required.
But obviously it was a prudent thing for Hydro to be doing, so that was the decision that they made, it was the right decision, but what we had said to them was the previous consent that we had given to them, to explore the potential sale of the combined cycle unit, was off the table.
CARLTON: I’m sorry Minister Groom, they are not the words you used when you made the release on the 12th of August about what had actually been decided. The direct quote from your media release, and for heavens sake I will read it again, just so that everybody understands:
“The government today has given approval for Hydro Tasmania to decommission and sell the combined cycle gas turbine.”
Subsequent to that there is no reference to energy security. It’s not about some sort of, well, we’ll have a look at it guys and if it stacks up on a whole bunch of grounds we’ll have a think about it.
You gave approval, your words, your office, your media release, for Hydro Tasmania to decommission and sell the combined cycle gas turbine. You’re now telling me that that was not correct?
GROOM: Well Brian what I’m doing is I’m giving you the facts. I’m giving you the facts, and the facts are that the proposal to explore the potential sale of the combined cycle unit was one which was put to the government by Hydro.
The government considered that request and it gave consent for Hydro Tasmania to explore the…
CARLTON: Right, well minister, on that basis the people of Tasmania minister, with all due respect, have absolute right not to believe another word that comes out of your office by way of your words or a media release. They cannot trust you.
GROOM: Well, well, well Brian, I mean I reject that…
CARLTON: Well the words are…but they’re your own words sir. I’m not making any of this up. These are your words I am playing back to you and quoting back to you.
You can’t have it both ways, you were either right the first time or you were wrong the first time. In which instance were you misleading us, because it’s one or the other?
GROOM: Well Brian what I’m trying to do is to give you the facts and the facts are…
CARLTON: Yeah, I know, I think, I think we’ve probably heard the facts Mr Groom, they’re aren’t too many more facts that you can, uh, I don’t think that you can put out that will correct the impression that you have absolutely misled the people of Tasmania, on more than one occasion.
GROOM: Well Brian I do reject that, I do reject it, and, um, what I am seeking to do here is to provide you with the facts so that people can understand…
CARLTON: Unfortunately, the facts you are trying to provide me with now Minister Groom completely contradict the facts you provided to the people on the 12th of August, the 22nd of December, and the 15th of January.
GROOM: Well, well I reject that Brian. I’ve been through each of the statements that you have made and I have attempted to provide you with the context in which they were made, and I stand by those comments.
CARLTON: Okay, well, I, I, I suggest then Minister Groom [Groom talking] okay. I am suggesting Minister Groom that once the Premier has a listen to this, you may not have a job by the end of today.
GROOM: Well Brian, you know, what I am seeking to do here is provide you and people that are listening to this with the facts as they unfolded.
CARLTON: Okay. Alright. Minister Groom I am out of time unfortunately. I think you, you’ve made your case fairly strongly, I don’t think it’s helped you at all, but I appreciate you calling in and at least having a chat, so thank you for that.
GROOM: Well, well Brian I do appreciate the opportunity to speak, but I just want to reiterate from our perspective, I know there are some people that are seeking to throw rocks through this process.
CARLTON: No, no minister.
GROOM: It’s a very difficult issue, and what we’re seeking to do is to focus on addressing all of the issues that need to be addressed, in order to ensure that we get through this, and that will continue to be the focus of the government.
CARLTON: Okay. Minister Groom, unless the public has complete confidence in a minister of the crown to tell them the truth, we’re in a lot of trouble, democracy is in a lot of trouble. I’d like you to think about that over the course of the arvo.
GROOM: Well, well, I am [indistinct] to tell the truth to the Tasmanian people. I absolutely reject suggestions to the contrary, and what I said to you yesterday was absolutely accurate. The government had not consented to the sale, it had consented to a process of exploring the…
CARLTON: Well, in that case minister, you’ve said that 14 times. I suggest then you have a look at your own media releases that come out of your office, perhaps you have a look at them before they’re released.
Because the words on your media release, and I’m not going to go over the same thing again, the words on your media release are very succinct. There’s no mention of energy security. This is the quote, the key quote, 12 August 2015:
“The government has today given approval for Hydro Tasmania to decommission and sell the combined cycle gas turbine.”
This is what the minister said to me on the show, yesterday:
[recording of Groom speaking]: “but in the context of the Tamar Valley Power Station, the government did not consent to the sale of it.”
CARLTON: Boom! Thank you Mr Groom.
• Chris in Comments: Looks like this advice should have applied to government itself. http://www.business.tas.gov.au/preparing_for_disasters
• Estelle Ross in Comments: The current feed-in-tariff for new installations of solar panels is 5.5c kWh plus GST which is a pittance and has had a deleterious effect on solar companies with an accompanying loss of jobs. In view of the power crisis, the original feed-in tariff for solar power of 28.283c kWh should be immediately re-instated .This would boost uptake, aid the power emergency, plus create more jobs.
• Richard Kopf in Comments: I think I told you so Mathew Groom. Basslink techs must know what is wrong with the cable and so do you Mr Groom. Basslink missed the promised weekly media report. Why. The news is too bad? A Billion dollar cable fault not worth reporting on?
EARLIER on Tasmanian Times …