5134 (2026). Steve Abel to the Minister for Energy

5134 (2026). Steve Abel to the Minister for Energy: What advice, briefings, correspondence or other communication, if any, has the Minister received on the carbon emissions profile of LNG compared to geothermal energy?

Hon Simon Watts: Wind and solar have lower emissions than LNG but could not solve the dry year issue, as: holding cheap, renewable energy in reserve would be a significant departure from the current market model (where the cheapest form of generation is used first). There would also be (perceived) credibility issues about limiting deployment to dry years. This could have a chilling effect on investment, both in renewables and firm generation.