Residents and businesses in Lakes Entrance and Orbost, Victoria, will be connected to reticulated natural gas by the middle of 2016.
Deputy Premier, Peter Ryan, joined The Nationals Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull, in Lakes Entrance to discuss the rollout of natural gas with local businesses and community groups. Mr Ryan said both Lakes Entrance and Orbost would be connected using a compressed natural gas delivery solution, an Australian first.
He said Brookfield Infrastructure Group had been selected to deliver the connection, following an $85million request for tender as part of the Coalition Government’s Energy for the Regions Program.
“This announcement is great news for the communities of Lakes Entrance and Orbost,” Mr Ryan said.
“Connecting Lakes Entrance and Orbost to gas will mean locals won’t have to purchase expensive bottled LPG, with the frustration of running out of gas set to be a thing of the past.”
“Having a natural gas connection will encourage more people to move to Lakes Entrance and Orbost and will help these communities attract new business and investment.”
Mr Ryan said the project would involve the installation of Daughter Stations on the outskirts of both Lakes Entrance and Orbost that would store compressed natural gas which would then be piped to homes and businesses.
Gas would be trucked from a central Mother Station to the Daughter Stations, with the gas to be delivered at a price comparable to natural gas supplied through conventional pipelines.
Mr Bull welcomed the investment and said connecting Lakes Entrance and Orbost to natural gas using a compressed natural gas (CNG) delivery solution was an Australian first that could change how gas was delivered right across Australia.
“For the Coalition Government to continue the roll-out of natural gas to regional communities such as Lakes Entrance and Orbost, a new approach was needed,” Mr Bull said.
“The Deputy Premier and Regional Development Victoria have worked in consultation with industry to come up with this unique CNG delivery solution which will deliver a constant supply of gas to households.”
“The beauty of this system is that the community will receive the same level of service as those connected to the broader gas pipeline grid, with this system also having the potential to be connected to the wider gas grid at a later stage.”
Brookfield will begin constructing the required infrastructure to begin the roll-out of natural gas to regional Victoria before the end of the year.
