A fresh investigation will be launched into the impact of a carbon price on the coal-fired power industry under a series of commitments made by the federal government to electricity company bosses.
It is understood Energy Minister Martin Ferguson and Climate Change Minister Greg Combet will ask three firms - KPMG, Mallesons Stephen Jaques and Lazard - to examine the impact of a carbon price on the security and reliability of the energy supply.
The commitment to another report on climate policy - made yesterday at a meeting with owners of coal-fired power plants including Victoria’s Hazelwood, Yallourn and Loy Yang A and B - comes just two months before the government’s self-imposed deadline to release the details of its carbon scheme.
It will join last-minute analyses from Treasury, the Productivity Commission and climate economist Ross Garnaut in shaping the final scheme design.
The government also agreed yesterday to release parts of a long-shelved 2009 report on coal power plants by consultants Morgan Stanley. The government had previously refused to release the report, citing its commercial sensitivity.
Meanwhile, the Coalition announced the members of a business group advising it on climate policy, including the president of a climate sceptics group, carbon tax opponents and advocates for soil carbon and solar power.
The panel was initially planned to build support for the Coalition’s climate change policy, but the 15 members have agreed only to examine the opposition’s ”direct action” plan.
The Coalition has been struggling to win public support from business leaders for its plan for a $10 billion fund to pay for cuts in carbon dioxide emissions; with former Reserve Bank board member Dick Warburton last month telling The Age he had not convinced any business leaders to openly back the policy.
Members of the panel include Mr Warburton and ex-Western Mining chief executive Hugh Morgan, president of the climate-sceptic Lavoisier Group.
Also involved are Coca-Cola Amatil managing director Terry Davis, Australian Food and Grocery Council chief Kate Carnell, National Farmers Federation president Jock Laurie and Andrew Dyer, director of solar company Bright Source Energy.
Mr Morgan said he had ”no idea” about the merits of the Coalition policy, but had agreed to offer advice. He said people were not aware how big a change to the economy was necessary to achieve the bipartisan target of a 5 per cent cut in carbon dioxide emissions below 2000 levels by 2020. It would require a cut of more than 20 per cent below projected 2020 emissions.
