The Cook government will pump 220 million taxpayer dollars into the failed Griffin Coal mine until 2026 to ensure it stays open and doesn't put Western Australia's electricity system at risk.In the Premier's own words, the spend is a "brutal solution" but unions and the Opposition say it's just a short-term fix.
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00:00 An almost quarter billion dollar super bailout to keep the lights on.
00:06 Thanks very much for coming to Collie today, it's great to be here.
00:10 Despite previous bailouts, the core problem remains for Griffin Coal.
00:14 It's locked in a contract with Blue Waters Power Station where it does not receive enough
00:19 for its coal to cover costs and has been placed in receivership.
00:23 The threat of sudden mine closure remains and I will not let that happen.
00:30 Two hundred and twenty million dollars will be doled out to subsidise the cost of its
00:34 coal until June 2026.
00:36 It will provide certainty to the workforce and for the other industries that rely on
00:41 the coal mine and will ensure our electricity grid remains reliable and affordable.
00:48 The government insists there is a huge range of opportunities on the horizon in Collie
00:52 that will provide jobs after 2026, but unions aren't convinced.
00:57 If it does finish in 2026 when they withdraw the funding then our concern is what happens
01:01 to those workers because there's no replacement jobs just yet for those workers to pick up.
01:06 This provides no certainty, it simply kicks the can down the road a bit further.
01:11 They are going to spend a quarter of a billion dollars propping up a foreign owned insolvent
01:15 company and in three years time we will be in exactly the same position that we are today.
01:21 The Premier says there will be a greater energy mix and more options in the electricity network
01:25 by then.
01:26 This is the only way that we can actually resolve it for now.
01:30 A brutal solution, a time limited solution and one which will see us get through this
01:35 particular problem until June 26.
01:38 Unions are calling for a retention package to encourage workers not to leave before then.
01:43 [BLANK_AUDIO]