Queensland granted permission to power data centres with coal or gas despite federal renewable push

During a national cabinet gathering, Queensland secured an exemption allowing its data centres to be powered by coal or gas, contrary to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s earlier call for renewable-only standards. Premier Steven Crisafulli highlighted the state’s control over its own generation and distribution networks as the basis for a technology-agnostic approach. The Northern Territory voiced similar opposition, indicating it may also rely on gas.

The summit also agreed to make Australian citizenship a prerequisite for holding a gun licence, with limited exceptions, and touched on topics such as AI legislation, domestic violence, bird flu funding and the stalled national gun buyback. Albanese announced that the revised standards, covering water usage and community consultation, will be introduced through legislation early next year. Ongoing talks will address concerns that data centre energy use could raise household and business electricity prices.