Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has doubled down on plans to implement nuclear power in Australia, despite an independent report showing it would be significantly more expensive than renewables.
Updated economic modelling released on Wednesday found renewable energy, including costs associated with transmission and big batteries to support it, remains the cheapest new-build technology.
Prepared by the CSIRO and Australian Energy Market Operator, the latest edition of the benchmark GenCost report found the cost of building a large-scale nuclear power plant would be at least $8.5 billion.