The federal Energy Minister insists he’s fighting to keep coal-fired power stations running as coal resources dwindle.

Energy Australia says Mount Piper Power Station is struggling to produce electricity, and is now generating 42 per cent less power than the same time last year.

They say the station, which supplies 15 per cent of NSW’s power, used to be supplied coal by six mines.

Now, there’s only one.

Energy Minister Angus Taylor tells Ray Hadley he will make it a priority to support existing coal plants.

“This is a major issue.

“The past attempts to get extensions to this coal mine and other adjacent coal mines have been thwarted by activists who don’t want coal mines being built.

“I’m going to focus on working with state governments to get these planning approvals through faster.

“We can’t get in the way, Ray, of getting new coal resources available for power stations.”

He also maintains the federal government could still underwrite new coal-fired power stations.

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