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Victoria New South Wales Interconnector West (VNI West)

REZ map redrawn to zero in on Mallee communities

Member for Mallee, Dr. Anne Webster, says the Victorian Labor government has sharpened its sights on Marnoo, Navarre, Beulah, Warracknabeal, Normanville and Quambatook to bear the brunt of the VNI West transmission line, wind turbine and solar panel burden of their energy targets.

Northern Grampians withdraws from five-council alliance

Northern Grampians Shire Council has withdrawn from a five-council alliance created to collectively advocate to State Government on issues including transmission lines, renewable energy and mining. The alliance, formed in February this year, also includes Buloke, Gannawarra, Yarriambiack and Loddon councils, which are all directly impacted...

Buloke’s clarification

Recent media reporting has incorrectly suggested that Buloke Shire Council, along with neighbouring councils, has entered into a $100 million deal with VicGrid in relation to the VNI West transmission project. This is incorrect.

The brutal cost of ignoring the bush: Australia’s rural collapse

Government changes have reallocated 3,200 gigalitres of irrigation water to environmental flows, much of it unmetered and flowing out to sea, creating dire consequences for regional food production. The Gannawarra Region alone is losing $1.3 billion annually – and these impacts are expected to worsen.

Bolitho pushes for fair deal in renewable red-carpet walkover

Last week, the Gannawarra Shire Council meeting birthed the first real progress in moving forward with a vision of true community benefit to the transmission lines driving the industrial energy developments within Gannawarra. It’s not the first time a Councillor has asked tough questions on the validity of the community benefit of the projects and sought cheap power.

Farmer rights at stake in wake of granted electricity licence: VFF

The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) says the Essential Services Commission’s decision to grant Transmission Company Victoria (TCV) an electricity transmission licence must not be treated as a license to steamroll landholders in the path of planned renewable energy projects. Amongst a raft of new powers, the licence enables TCV workers to legally enter farms and carry out preparatory works for the VNI West powerline without the need to obtain landholder consent. 

For developing workforce accommodation – transmission company seeks public input

Community members in the Buloke Shire are encouraged to share their interests and concerns with Transmission Company Victoria (TCV) to help shape the development of workforce accommodation for the VNI West project. Recognising that many areas in the VNI West project corridor face housing availability and affordability challenges, we’re inviting input on our approach to developing workforce accommodation.

As powerlines rip up farming land: Food production at risk

Leader of The Nationals and Shadow Agriculture Minister, David Littleproud, said this week that Labor’s planned 240-kilometre Victorian stretch of the VNI West powerline will rip up prime agriculture land ... Yeungroon farmer Glenden Watts said the whole project isn’t necessary ... “The route does a dog-leg into farming land, rather than the populated areas."

Community input reflected in the preferred easement for VNI West: TCV

Transmission Company Victoria (TCV) today released the preferred easement for the Victorian section of the VNI West transmission project ... The process to refine the initial 50km wide area of interest to a 2km draft corridor and now a 70m preferred easement has been shaped by 18 months of consultation with communities and individual landholders, along with field studies and technical and engineering assessments.

Landholders the priority for VNI West route update: TCV

Transmission Company Victoria (TCV) is prioritising contact with landholders in communications about the planned route for the new transmission line. TCV has narrowed the draft corridor for VNI West to a preferred easement of 70 metres along most of the route, subject to the Environment Effects Statement (EES) ... Landholder Liaisons will seek to meet in person to listen to concerns, answer questions on topics such as compensation, and discuss the next steps.