Press Release
Friday Oct 5
Minister to open national conference on regional Australia’s energy future
Victoria’s Minister for Energy and Earth Resources, Peter Batchelor, will open a
major national conference on rural and regional Australia’s energy future in Bendigo
on Sunday.
The conference addresses the urgent need for rural and regional areas to address their
energy futures.
It features 47 speakers including national, state and international players - researchers,
companies and investors - in the electricity and transport industries. Included are
leaders in the fields of solar, wind and geothermal power generation and energy
distribution and monitoring, plus transport. Subjects rang from coal gasification to
printable solar cells, to technology that allows consumers to switch off during peak
tariff periods and more.
The Premier of Victoria, John Brumby, will address the conference dinner on
Monday.
Joint organisers, the City of Greater Bendigo and the Centre for Sustainable Regional
Communities at La Trobe University’s Bendigo campus, said the conference was
timely with a recent Business Council of Australia report on infrastructure reform
signalling that Australia’s electricity industry faced the biggest challenge of all major
sectors needing reform.
City of Greater Bendigo Cr Keith Reynard said rural and regional areas could benefit
by measuring their energy consumption and assessing the viability of generating
power locally. He said the conference was especially geared for local governments
and regional business planners and developers as well as local industry and
manufacturers who could benefit from energy reform.
“This conference is about explaining how our electricity and energy grid is about to
change. New technologies will change the way we generate, deliver, use and monitor
our energy.”
The Director of the Centre for Sustainable Regional Communities at La Trobe
University’s Bendigo campus, Prof John Martin, said regional cities and rural areas
could no longer afford to bury their heads in the sand about energy generation and
use.
“Those who become part of the smart grid and adopt and adapt will have greater
pulling power when it comes to attracting business and residents,” Prof Martin said.
Mr Batchelor will officially open the conference in Bendigo’s Capital Theatre at
6.30pm Sunday. The conference concludes at 4.45pm Tuesday.
Media contacts:
Cr Keith Reynard, City of Greater Bendigo 0428 581198
Prof John Martin, Director, Centre for Sustainable Regional Communities 0421
584313
To arrange media interviews with speakers and to attend the conference dinner,
contact Genevieve Barlow 0427 762633
NEWS 
