Australia : Locals demand end to wind tower dumping

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AMWU - Locals demand end to wind tower dumping THE UNION ABOUT US OUR HISTORY THE SECRETARY`S OFFICE SOCIAL MEDIA YOUR STATE YOUR INDUSTRY EMPLOYMENT ELECTIONS & RULES MISTAS CAMPAIGNS STOP 457 VISA EXPLOITATION OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY WOMEN BUILDING UNION STRENGTH ASBESTOS PAID PARENTAL LEAVE CLIMATE CHANGE ANTI-DUMPING SECURE JOBS. BETTER FUTURE MANUFACTURING: AUSTRALIA`S FUTURE AMWU CARE MEMBERSHIP WHY JOIN? - ASK OUR MEMBERS UNION SERVICES JOIN NOW MAKE A PAYMENT MORE GREAT REASONS TO JOIN DIRECT DEBIT UNION DUES A UNION THAT WORKS FOR YOU FINANCIAL ADVICE TOOLKIT HELPDESK FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS CONTACT THE HELPDESK NEWS LATEST HEADLINES NEWS BY STATE NEWS BY INDUSTRY MEDIA RESEARCH & SUBMISSIONS PUBLICATIONS DELEGATES LOG IN news latest headlines email this to a friend printer friendly version increase text size« back to latest headlinesLocals demand end to wind tower dumping
Nov 29, 2012

AMWU members whose jobs are threatened are mobilising community anger at power companies sending  building work for wind towers offshore when commissioning new Australian wind farms.

It comes as Tasmanmia Hydro have just announced Australia’s largest wind farm project, for 200 turbines on King Island to provide power for Victoria.

AMWU National Secretary Paul Bastian will be writing to Hydro Tasmania, as he has other power generators, demanding that the $2 billion project be sourced here rather relying on cheaper imports.

Last week nearly 200 people went to a public meeting called by the AMWU in the Victorian town of Portland over concerns 120 jobs could be lost.

Local firm Keppel Prince Engineering indicated it had lost out to a South Korean company on a major contract to build 64 wind towers for another big wind farm, at Mt Mercer near Ballarat.

AMWU members, local MPs and Shire of Glenelg councillors are demanding answers from REpower and Meridian Energy, which awarded the Mt Mercer contract to the South Korean bid.

“We have a solid record on good quality work, but it’s very hard to compete against what look like  dumping of foreign product, which must be subsidised,” said AMWU delegate at Keppel Prince, Neville Dennert.

“A lot of people raised the issue that if this continues then Keppel Prince may have to lay off more than 100 of us, which would have a major impact on businesses in the Portland area.”

The meeting voted to form a committee to publicise the issue, following the AMWU in urging the Federal Government to toughen anti-dumoing rules and promote Australian product.

Mr Bastian said it was not good enough for major wind farms at Mt Mercer, Snowtown in South Australia and near Goulburn in NSW willl have the vast majority of their towers built by overseas companies enjoying  generous subsidies from their own governments.

“Many of these towers will likely be sourced from factories in China which have been convicted in the US of dumping the steel wind towers to destroy local industries,” he said.

The Portland meeting came on the same day that power company Siemens announced that about 20 of 90 wind towers for its Snowtown II farm would be built by Whyalla-based  E & A Contractors, securing jobs there.  It is likely the rest will be imported.

E &A Contractors will salvage some of the equipment of steel fabricator RPG, which had bid for 45 per cent of the Snowtown II project  but went into administration with the loss of 150 jobs.

The limited local work continues a pattern set for the Gullen Range farm near Goulburn in NSW where just 17 wind towers will be locally made while 56 are imported from China.

“Renewable Energy is supposed to mean an improvement for the community, a better way of generating power and jobs, but people can see feel opportunity slipping through their fingers,” said AMWU organiser at Portland, Mark Solly.
 

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Contact Person: Neil Wilson
Contact Email: news (at) amwu (dot) asn (dot) au

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