30 April 2021 Hunter Valley clean energy businesses say there is no need for the federal Coalition government’s proposed new gas plant at Kurri Kurri, as a senior energy official also questioned the viability of the project and others in the industry said it would be impossible to build it in time to replace the Liddell coal generator. The Morrison government has repeatedly threatened to build – through its wholly owned Snowy Hydro – a gas plant of up to 1,000MW if the private sector did not respond adequately to the perceived shortfall created by the planned closure of Liddell in early 2023. Energy minister Angus Taylor still argues that the shortfall, which he now brands as an “economic” one rather than a physical one, remains close to 1,000MW, despite the numerous battery storage, coal upgrade and renewable energy investment projects put forward. AEMO puts the shortfall at just 154MW.