The NSW government’s claim that the Kurnell desalination plant was delivered on budget and on time is, at best, deceptive, according to Jonathan O’Dea, Chairman of the Opposition’s WasteWatch Committee and the Member for Davidson.
“Given the fact that the government has consistently failed to deliver infrastructure projects on budget or on time, it is no surprise that the government has desperately claimed that the desalination plant was within budget and on time. Neither is true.
“The government increased the budget from an original $1.3 billion in November 2005[i], to $1.76 billion in June 2007[ii], to $1.83 billion in July 2007[iii] and then to $1.89 billion in June 2008[iv] - the very same amount of $60 million that Premier Keneally claims to have saved!” said Mr O’Dea.
“This government has a record of moving goal posts when it cannot achieve basic outcomes, including its decision to change the definition of ‘late’ in order to improve train related statistics. Now we see the same deception with the desalination plant.
“The overall budget bungle is compounded by the initial poor policy decision to build the desalination plant. It is an enormous waste of money that would have been better directed to water harvesting and recycling projects. The government acted against expert advice and broke its promise to only build the plant if dam levels fell to 30%.
“The costs of the desalination plant will place additional strain on the NSW and family budget, costing households $100 per year each. Many of these families are struggling to pay their bills, due to the poorly performing NSW economy”, Mr O’Dea said.
Shadow Minister for Natural Resource Management, Katrina Hodgkinson, has also pointed out that the original cost of operating the desalination plant has blown out to approximately $70 million per annum[v].
“Not only did the government revise the budget for the desalination plant, it revised the date of completion. On 25 June 2007, then Premier, Morris Iemma, announced that the plant would be finished by September 2009[vi]. This was then revised to late 2009[vii]. The plant was actually delivered in late January 2010, and is still not fully operational.
“The government’s deceptive claims about the desalination plant demonstrate its desperation, deception, financial mismanagement and waste”, concluded Mr O’Dea.
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[i] NSW Auditor General, Auditor General’s Report to Parliament 2007 Volume Four, 2007, 156
[ii] Morris Iemma, Iemma Announces Key Milestones on Sydney Water Infrastructure, 25 June 2007. It was at this time that the government announced the desalination plant would have an increased capacity.
[iii] NSW Auditor General, Auditor General’s Report to Parliament 2009 Volume Seven, 2009, 56
[iv] Ibid
[v] Katrina Hodgkinson, Desalination a Monument to Bad Government, 28 January 2010.
[vi] Morris Iemma, Iemma Announces Key Milestones on Sydney Water Infrastructure, 25 June 2007
[vii] NSW Auditor General, Auditor General’s Report to Parliament 2007 Volume Four, 2007, 166
