Question Without Notice No. 77 asked in the Legislative Council on 29 February 2024 by Hon Dr Steve Thomas

Parliament: 41 Session: 1  

GRIFFIN COAL — FUNDING STREAM 

77. Hon Dr STEVE THOMAS to the minister representing the Minister for State and  Industry Development, Jobs and Trade: 

I refer to the additional extraordinary figure of a $220 million funding stream to the insolvent  Griffin Coal. 

(1) Who or whom, including of the receivers, managers, lenders or shareholders, requested  the figure of $220 million and for what detailed operational rationale or scope? 

(2) The government has stated ad nauseum, ''We will continue to work with parties to find a  commercial solution to support longer term operations.'' Will the now extraordinary  $260 million taxpayer-funded Griffin bailout payments be recovered once  ''commercial solutions'' are resolved?+ 

Hon SUE ELLERY replied: 

I thank the honourable member for some notice of the question and answer on behalf of the  minister representing. 

(1)–(2) The government announced on 1 December 2023 that to prevent a sudden mine  closure and ensure a managed transition for Collie, the government was allocating $220  million to support continued operations at Griffin until June 2026. The figure was  determined by the Department of the Premier and Cabinet and the Department of  Treasury taking a range of factors and inputs into account. This funding  announcement delivers certainty for the mine workforce, industry and the  community to enable a sensible and managed transition.