The official closure of the Munmorah coal fired power plant today, two years after it was mothballed, is a clear signal that Australia is at last moving towards building a clean energy economy, the Australian Greens said today.

"With Australia now putting a price on pollution, we're already seeing that our economy will increasingly be powered by clean, renewable energy, not by coal,'" said Australian Greens Deputy Leader, Adam Bandt MP.

"Since the plant was already mothballed two years ago, according to the company's statement the closure comes with no job losses. Instead, it opens the way for more jobs in clean, innovative industries to start to compete with coal.

"If there were to be job losses, the Greens would strongly support transitional assistance for workers to retrain and find jobs in other parts of the economy.

"In 2010, the NSW Government had planned to refurbish and increase the capacity of the power station, citing projections of increasing energy demand. The reality is that energy demand is falling, as householders, businesses and industry realise that they can save money by saving energy - with the by-product that they are cutting the pollution that drives global warming.

"In addition, as is happening in Germany, renewable energy, which has close to zero running costs, is already outcompeting the old polluting power stations in parts of Australia.

"This is another reason why putting a price on pollution is the beginning of change for the better."

More information: Sam La Rocca 0413 620 073