AEMO gives extra two weeks

AUSTRALIAN Energy Market Operator has extended consultation on its latest VNI West route proposal after sustained criticism from communities, councils and farmers.

AEMO on Monday confirmed consultation would now close on April 19 after originally ending yesterday.

“While we’ve already received submissions, we have extended the deadline for those that need extra time to make informed submissions,” a spokesman said.

While AEMO’s consultation webpage still reflects the original end to a six-week consultation period, Victorian Farmers’ Federation claimed victory in its push to

Wednesday the 12th April 2023.

At 3pm please join us for a presentation from the following guest presenters.

Doug Clark – Wheelhouse Agronomist Pasture and Paddock Feed – What’s Available now.

Tania Luders - Dickson AG

Tania will look at Nutritional requirements of Ewe’s coming into lambing season given our current pasture status coming out of the floods.

Adrian Jackson – Virbac Animal Health Optimising Pregnancy and Conception Rates with Multimin

Alexander Pollock – McKean McGregor Livestock Sheep Market update and opportunities into 2023

Andrew Smith – Wheelhouse AGnVET Current Fertiliser Market insight.

Rick Roberts from Philmac will also be on site to answer any of your poly fitting related enquiries.

Meals and Drinks will be available with a Spit in operation with Tasty local lamb rolls available for all attending.

Please RSVP to the branch on 5437 3174

Be a leader, harness unique skills, and give back to your community as a volunteer in our emergency services sector.

Receive training and support from staff in: „ People management.

„ Internal and external stakeholder engagement and relationships. „ Recruiting and retaining volunteers.

Expressions of interest close on Monday 17 April 2023 extend time for potentially affected landowners to comment on the new preferred route through Loddon Shire first revealed in a report six weeks ago.

VFF said: “The VNI West project seeks to expand the transmission interconnector capacity between Victoria and New South Wales through infrastructure that links renewable energy facilities in both states.

“AEMO has considered a total of seven credible options for the project route. Option 5, a 500 kilovolt (kV) double-circuit overhead transmission line connecting to the Western Renewables Link (WRL) at Bulgana to EnergyConnect in the NSW Riverina via a new terminal station in Northern Victoria, is AEMO’s preferred option.

“Farmers have been blindsided by the proposal, which was orginally understood to be an upgrade to an existing 220kv line from Ballarat to Kerang via Bendigo.

“The newly proposed project would see new infrastructure built over valuable farmland, including irrigation districts.

“The VFF has expressed its anger over the consultation process in which AEMO is not providing information to the com- munity that is required to understand the project’s impact.

“The VFF and Northern Grampians Shire conducted a public meeting with over 170 attendees to hear from VFF representatives and VicGrid, which is the newly established agency within government that will be responsible for the planning of future transmission projects.

“Representatives from AEMO were in attendance to hear the frustrations of the community.”

The consultation process was criticised by Loddon Shire councillors who also claimed to be blindsided by the new preferred option.

An AEMO report last year had listed a route from Bendigo to Kerang through Prairie West as the preferred option.

VFF, including its Wedderburn branch, had asked farmers to contact and convince AEMO to support the VFF’s call for the consultation to be extended.

Farmers have also been urged to make individual submissions.

“Submissions do not have to be exhaustive or formally written. Anything is better than nothing,” the VFF has told farmers across the region.