SWAN HILL Rural City Council is confident the region will receive natural gas,
but has ruled out a pipeline at this stage.
Swan Hill Rural City Council CEO
Dean Miller said a study into delivering natural gas to the region was in stage
two of development, with the possibility of delivering it by truck high on the
list of possibilities.
Swan Hill is the only major regional centre in
Victoria without natural gas.
“Trucking the gas here is definitely one of the
options we are looking at,” Mr Miller said.
“The State Government is
committed to bringing natural gas to the region.”
Stage one of the study
found the feasibility of bringing natural gas to the area would cost an
estimated minimum capital investment of $67.7 million.
Preliminary studies
have found demand for gas in the region is largely residential, leading to the
conclusion that a pipeline would not be a viable economic option.
Stage one
assessed the preliminary technical considerations and the demand for natural
gas, identifying potential connection points to existing Victorian and New South
Wales gas networks and providing advice on the cost, viability and constraints
associated with these potential connection points.
“No one is looking at a
pipeline now, although it will always be a possibility down the track,” Mr
Miller said.
Natural gas in the region would reduce power costs for companies
by replacing electricity, Mr Miller said, adding it would create more potential
for certain major industries such as manufacturing, processing and hydroponic
food production to expand.
Swan Hill mayor Les McPhee said natural gas would
be a great advantage to Swan Hill, which he described as a “black hole” on the
map when it came to accessing the natural resource.
For more of this story, see Wednesday’s Guardian (August 21).
