By NOEL MURPHY
ALCOA’S Anglesea power plant remains on the market with several potential buyers vying for the controversial coal-powered plant despite expectations it would be sold or shut down by the end of 2014.
More than 80 jobs are on the line at the plant, which had been used to power Alcoa’s Point Henry operations in Geelong until the last of them closed last month, cutting 800 jobs and ending a 51-year aluminium era.
“The sale process is continuing,” Alcoa spokesperson Kate Betts told the Independent this week.
“A shortlist of potential buyers was developed from the initial expressions of interest and our initial expectation was that the process would be complete by the end of 2014.
“However, it has proved to be more complex than we anticipated. We remain focused on working through it as quickly as possible.
“As we said before, if a sale is not possible we’ll evaluate options at that time, including possible closure.”
Concerns about emissions from the Anglesea plant have prompted a concerted campaign for closure from community group Surf Coast Air Action but Alcoa maintains its operations are all within regulatory demands.
“With regard to claims of serious health threats, Alcoa complies with all regulations and legal obligations with regard to its Anglesea operations,” Ms Betts said.
“The procedures, equipment, quality of data reported and quality management systems in place are audited by the EPA and NATA (National Association of Testing Authorities) to ensure we meet the current standards required for air monitoring.
“In the 2013 Human Health Risk Assessment (HHRA), which was peer reviewed, it is concluded that the potential for emissions from the power station and the coal mine to cause chronic (long term) health effects is considered to be low, and that the possible acute (short term) health risk is not considered to be cause for concern due to the inherent conservatism embedded in the exposure assessment applied to screening health risk assessment.”
