For the past 15 years Hazelwood has returned profits to its private owners who are not even in Australia. Now they effectively want the state to pay for the replacement of Hazelwood.
Got one of the oldest and world’s dirtiest coal-fired electrical power stations that should have been closed down five years ago? Just like those clunkers rusting in backyards, this heap of industrial junk could just be worth a cool $1 (or $2) billion in "compensation" by the government to close it down.
This is the suggestion from the owners of Hazelwood Power Station and helpfully by the Premier of Victoria John Brumby. Actually the owners, International Power (IPRH), a London-based multinational company, would no doubt prefer the $2 billion suggested by Green Energy Markets, as IPRH would rather close all eight turbines than just the two proposed by the Victorian government.