THURSDAY NOVEMBER 30TH
MOORABOOL AND CENTRAL HIGHLANDS POWER ALLIANCE (MCHPA) / REGIONAL VICTORIAN POWER ALLIANCE (RVPA)

Annual General Meeting (“AGM”) of the MCHPA/RVPA members will be held at 7:30pm (AEST) on Thursday, 30 November 2023, via video conference (zoom).

Join Zoom (online conference) Meeting by clicking the link below at 7:25pm
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88349074323?pwd=T1BhSzRoWUtjZ2Q5VEkvbWNhZTgzZz09

You do not need to RSVP

Prior to the meeting members will receive:

• AGM papers including the MCHPA Chairs Report and Financial Statements

Following the brief AGM, the MCHPA/RVPA Committee will present an update on recent undertakings and allow time for questions.

We are anticipating a large number of participants, and as such plan take questions through the Zoom platform chat function. We appreciate this is not ideal however is the best way to manage the large volume of participants.

For more details contact:
info@stoplaborstowers.com.au

The dispute notice challenged the VNI West RIT-T. This is a separate dispute to the Alliance’s Supreme Court challenge at trial in September against the Victorian Government’s Ministerial Orders, which awaits the judge’s decision.

On Monday October 16th, 2023 The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) published its determination in response to the dispute notice lodged by the Moorabool & Central Highlands Power Alliance (Alliance) in June 2023 (and the Alliance’s supplementary notice dated July 2023).

After the Alliance had lodged its dispute notices, the AER had asked for further submissions from the Alliance about its ‘standing’. Today, in response to those submissions, the AER found that the Alliance satisfied the definition of ‘interested party’ giving it a right to bring its dispute.

However, the AER dismissed the Alliance’s complaints about the compliance of the RIT-T process with the National Electricity Rules (grounds 1 to 5). Additional matters raised by the Alliance were found to be unrelated to the RIT-T process; the AER rejected these grounds.

The determination is available at: https://www.aer.gov.au/victoria-nsw-interconnector-west-vni-west-rit-t-dispute

The Alliance is seeking legal advice in relation to the determination.

Is there a case for building new grid interconnectors?

AEMO’s own data suggests not. Read the full story here.

‘Sick of it’ – Farmers angry about renewables projects (2gb.com)

Dear Editor

In September 2023 the MCHPA, trading as the Regional Victoria Power Alliance, took Lily D’Ambrosio, the Victorian Energy Minister, to the Victorian Supreme Court in defence of our communities, our regions, and livelihoods.

The MCHPA asked the Court to overturn Lily D’Ambrosio’s Ministerial Orders which give AEMO approval to accelerate the VNI-West and WRL transmission lines. The MCHPA believes these orders to be unlawful and a gross overreach of ministerial power and driven by ‘market greed’, i.e. what is in the best interests of energy generators and transmission providers; rather than an a ‘customer’ view, i.e. what is best for consumers, communities and the environment.

No matter how much spin, AEMO, AusNet or Lily puts on these projects, I believe they are both fundamentally flawed.

The final rebuttal from the MCHPA’s barrister was commanding and skilful and left all confident that we are ‘definitely in the game’.

But while the community waits for the judge’s verdict, AEMO and AusNet keep pushing on. Just this week, new announcements and softly worded flyers in our mailboxes… AusNet has not quit or gone away, so as a community we cannot rest on the strength of reaching this legal milestone. We must continue to resist their inducements and attempts at appeasement, and keep planning our next actions, and prepare to counter theirs.

Lily might be forced to rescind her orders, but will she send the WRL and VNI-West back to the drawing board, or is she just as likely to try another tactic to bulldoze these projects through?

As a community, the reality we must face is that our campaign must continue. To win in the end, we need to remain united in our resistance and keep fighting the current battle, while planning the next.