General News
25 August, 2026
Coalition to scrap VNI West
THE Liberal and National Parties have promised to scrap the controversial VNI West transmission project, 100 days out from the state election.
The Coalition had previously committed to ‘pausing and reviewing’ VNI West, but on Wednesday announced the project will not proceed if they win office.
Member for Lowan Emma Kealy said the Coalition's decision to dump the project made it clear where the parties stand.
"We will cancel VNI West and protect the farms, families and communities across western Victoria that Labor was prepared to sacrifice for its transmission experiment.”
“From St Arnaud to the Wimmera, locals have fought VNI West every step of the way. We’ve listened, and in government, we’ll stop it,” she said.
The proposed transmission line connecting Victoria to the New South Wales grid is estimated to cost between $7.6 billion and $11.4 billion.
It was initially proposed by the Morrison Coalition Government and have been driven in recent years by Federal and State Labor Governments.
But the project has led to strong and widespread opposition in Victoria's west, particularly among farmers from Stawell through to the Murray River whose land will be impacted.
Ms Kealy said the Coalition will explore alternative options to keep power generation and prices sustainable.
"We're looking at unlocking our gas reserves, we're looking at extending coal to its technical end of life," Ms Kealy said.
The decision has been welcomed by the Farmers Fightback group who’ve opposed the project since its inception.
“The Victorian Coalition sat down, listened to farmers, and acted on what they heard. That is what representation is meant to look like.
“One Nation is also committed to removing the destructive VNI West. Two parties have now put their name to preserving prime Australian farmland instead of carving it up for infrastructure drawn on a map in a Melbourne office by people who have never opened a farm gate,” the group said on Facebook.
In a statement, Energy and Resources Minister Jaclyn Symes said the Coalition's pledge to scrap the project was irresponsible.
"Jess Wilson's One Nation-Coalition's reckless decision will destroy electricity reliability across Victoria, guaranteeing blackouts and pushing up power bills," she said.
"Only Labor will build the critical renewable energy infrastructure, including VNI West, needed to deliver cheap power and keep the lights on as our aging coal-fired generators retire."
Ms Symes also questioned whether the Coalition would reintroduce fracking.
"There is no restriction on bringing online new gas supply through conventional means in Victoria," Ms Symes said.
The decision to scrap the project has been welcomed by Victorian Farmers Federation President Ryan Milgate.
"VNI West has long been a failed project that is tearing apart generational farming families and would rip up some of the best farmland in the country," president Ryan Milgate said.
While farmers are cheering the Coalition's move, renewable energy and environment groups have slammed it.
Clean Energy Council chief executive Jackie Trad said VNI West was critical to energy security and the replacement of aging coal.
"Cancelling VNI West does not make that closure [of Yallourn] go away. It just decreases the amount of electricity Victorians have access to, inevitably pushing up prices and electricity bills," she said.
"The Coalition says gas will fill the gap, but Victorians deserve to know where that gas is actually going to come from."
Environment Victoria's climate campaign manager Joy Toose said the Coalition's plan would expose Victorians to higher power prices and less reliable electricity.
"Renewables and the transmission that carries them are the only thing actually bringing bills down," she said.
"Cancelling that to burn more gas is a plan for higher bills and blackouts, dressed up as the opposite."
The Coalition has also committed to reviewing and potentially scrapping the Western Renewables Link project from Bulgana to Melbourne.
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