The government is "squandering opportunities" to create jobs in regional Tasmania by failing to prepare for the nascent hydrogen energy industry, Deputy Labor Leader Michelle O'Byrne says.
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Ms O'Byrne made the comments at the Labor state conference in Burnie on Saturday while urging the party to support a policy to establish a hydrogen industry in northern Tasmania.
She said the move would deliver jobs and capitalise on the "opportunity right now for investment and engagement at the Bell Bay site for a hydrogen facility supported by Federal Labor".
"It's the jobs of the future, they're renewable jobs, they're clean jobs, they sustainable jobs, they're skilled jobs," Ms O'Byrne said.
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"And they are jobs that are being squandered by this government because they don't have the energy, the intelligence or the passion for northern Tasmania to make sure that they deliver a future for us."
Minister for Energy Guy Barnett said the government had "substantial interest in progressing opportunities" around the hydrogen industry and the Coordinator-General was working with proponents "around potential hydrogen applications".
"Tasmania is well placed, with renewable energy resources that may be applied to hydrogen production and the opportunity to leverage our existing transmission corridors and port infrastructure to produce and export hydrogen," he said.
"As a result of this incredible opportunity for Tasmania, we have, and will continue to actively participate in the development of the National Hydrogen Strategy," he said.
But Ms O'Byrne warned Tasmania was not laying the groundwork for what would be a $10 billion industry like other states such as Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia.
"So the Finkle Report comes out later this year and it will map where the investment dollars go. They are only going to go to the jurisdictions that have done the work," she said.
The Labor Party conference endorsed the hydrogen industry proposal along with a motion to support a Northern Tasmanian Regional Development Fund that could facilitate it.
The fund would be funded by the state and federal government and have "the capacity to deliver important government co-investment to establish new job creating emerging industries in Northern Tasmania".
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