In a rare move, the head of Australia's top science agency, Doug Hilton, has defended his organisation and science from a concerted political attack from the federal Coalition over nuclear power costs.
The GenCost report from the CSIRO has come under sustained attack from the opposition, including by the leader Peter Dutton, who has claimed that it was "discredited" and "not a genuine piece of work" as he claimed it does not take into account "some" costs associated with transmission and subsidies.
The December report, an annual offering from CSIRO with the Australian Energy Market Operator into the cost of electricity production, found renewable sources such as wind and solar were cheaper than coal and nuclear.
Dr Hilton issued an open letter on Friday standing by the work of the CSIRO and pointing to politicians without naming Mr Dutton.
"The GenCost report can be trusted by all our elected representatives, irrespective of whether they are advocating for electricity generation by renewables, coal, gas or nuclear energy," the CSIRO boss said.
"As chief executive of CSIRO, I will staunchly defend our scientists and our organisation against unfounded criticism.
"The GenCost report can be trusted by all our elected representatives, irrespective of whether they are advocating for electricity generation by renewables, coal, gas or nuclear energy."
The GenCost report found that nuclear small modular reactors (SMRs) emerged as the highest-cost technology, costing between $200 and $350 per megawatt hour by 2030. This is compared to solar and wind which would be between about $60 and $100 per MWh by 2030.
The figures do include costs such as extra transmission in the renewable transition, storage and gas "peaking" capacity to offset renewables "droughts". Large-scale nuclear reactors were not modelled.
Dr Hilton, a renowned molecular and cellular biologist, joined the CSIRO in June last year.
He said science was crucial to tackling profound challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to net zero.
But he said science also requires community trust.
"Maintaining trust requires scientists to act with integrity. Maintaining trust also requires our political leaders to resist the temptation to disparage science," he said.
Mr Dutton said he was not attacking science nor undermining the CSIRO.
"Well, there's nothing disparaging about the comments that I made or that we've made," he told Today on Friday.
"My point is that we need to compare apples with apples. At the moment, that report that was released, it doesn't take into consideration all of the costs around renewables. I'm strongly in favour of renewables, but we need to keep the lights on and we need to keep our prices down.
"All I'm saying is let's have a fair comparison, instead of a skewed one, and that's why I was critical of that particular report, not of the CSIRO in general, and I think it was a fair point to make."
Other Opposition figures to criticise the report include Nationals Leader David Littleproud and the opposition's spokesperson on energy and climate change Ted O'Brien.
The Coalition has been boosting nuclear power since its 2022 election loss, and it has indicated its plan is to put reactors in places where coal-fired power vacates so older transmission infrastructure can be used.
Karen Barlow
Karen Barlow is ACM's Chief Political Correspondent. Working in the federal press gallery, she investigates and writes about federal politics and government. She has an interest in integrity, leadership and social equity. She has covered two Olympics and been to Antarctica twice. Contact her on karen.barlow@canberratimes.com.au
Karen Barlow is ACM's Chief Political Correspondent. Working in the federal press gallery, she investigates and writes about federal politics and government. She has an interest in integrity, leadership and social equity. She has covered two Olympics and been to Antarctica twice. Contact her on karen.barlow@canberratimes.com.au
