To say NSW Opposition Leader Barry O’Farrell is non-committal about the power industry privatisation is an understatement. He has already started to downplay the auditor-general’s report, and as time goes by will no doubt find further fault with the proposal, arguing all the while that his motivation is the public interest.

Under the proposal, retailers EnergyAustralia and Country Energy would be sold and generators Delta Electricity and Macquarie Generation leased out in long-term agreements. A public share offering of a combined entity consisting of Integral Energy and generator Eraring Energy is expected to generate $10 billion, while the New South Wales Government says it will save $15 billion in the cost of a new generator needed by 2014.

The State Government has called on the Opposition to support the sale because it is concerned about a lack of solidarity among its own backbenchers, with NSW Premier Morris Iemma calling on Opposition Leader Barry O’Farrell to back the planned sale. The Auditor-General had been requested to assess the sale of the government-owned electricity industry assets to assuage State Opposition concerns over the proposals.