Australian taxpayers will be footing a bill of up to $450 million (US$300 million) to compensate for the potential losses incurred by a power station due to the Labor government’s energy price relief policy.
Mining giant Rio Tinto, the major shareholder of the Gladstone Power Station, will receive the lump sum to offset the impact of the 12-month coal price cap imposed under the federal government policy in 2023.
Gladstone Power Station is one of the only two wholly private generators selling electricity to the grid in Queensland.
The 1,680 megawatt plant usually generates electricity for Rio’s aluminium smelter in Gladstone. However, it has been supplying power to the national grid to fill the gap left by the Callide Power Station following an explosion that destroyed one of its generation units in May 2021….