CPRS shelved: Prime Minister

Mr Rudd said that international governments will be required to make their post-Kyoto commitments clear by that time, putting the Australian Government in a better position to assess the implementation of a CPRS at a later date.

The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) and the Australian Pipeline Industry Association (APIA) have previously commented on the Government’s proposed CPRS. While both associations recognised the importance of the scheme, they stated that an increased recognition for the gas industry was needed.

APPEA Chief Executive Belinda Robinson said that “the introduction of a domestic emissions trading scheme is an important step towards a cleaner energy future for Australia.

“A well designed scheme would encourage the expansion of Australia’s LNG sector as more natural gas, producing between 50 and 70 per cent fewer greenhouse gas emissions, is substituted for coal in generating China’s and India’s electricity generation,” she said.

APIA Chief Executive Cheryl Cartwright had welcomed the scheme, but was concerned over the potential effect on the gas industry.

Ms Cartwright said that the introduction of a CPRS may cause problems for gas transmission companies, which operate under long-term contracts that do not have allowances for the introduction of a carbon pricing scheme. If companies were unable to pass through costs, the whole system would be undermined as the true cost of emissions would not be felt by the eventual user, Ms Cartwright had noted.

Last year the CPRS was voted down twice in the Senate, with Opposition Leader Tony Abbot releasing an alternative carbon reduction plan in February this year.

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