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His demand contrasts with the recent remarks of Resources Minister Madeleine King,whocut a deal with gas producers in September that she said would put downward pressure on gas prices and remove the need to pull the trigger on export controls,contained in the Australian Domestic Gas Supply Mechanism (ADGSM).

When King reached the heads of agreement deal,where gas producers promised to fill a forecast shortfall in the local market,she said gas prices were very unlikely to return below $10 a gigajoule.

Prices have spiked due to a global energy crunch driven by a ban on Russian exports and the wholesale spot price is currently around $20 a gigajoule. Before LNG exports began in 2015,$4 a gigajoule was common.

Husic toldThe Age andThe Sydney Morning Herald that the government needed to “fix the ADGSM because it’s flawed legislation” and the next step would be reforming the gas producers’code of conduct,which the former Coalition government negotiated to help local gas buyers get a fair deal compared to lucrative export contracts.

“At the moment,a lot of manufacturers see the code of conduct as one-sided and absent of any real measure on price,” he said.

“We’re not against them[gas producers] making a profit,but we are against them doing it in a way that’s putting pressure on other parts of the economy.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spearheaded Labor’s election campaign push togrow the local manufacturing sector,which is currently largely dependent on gas power and struggles to compete against lower-priced international competitors.

“This is a government that’s been elected on a mandate to revitalise manufacturing. We think it’s in the national interest,” Husic said.

Manufacturing Australia chief executive Ben Eade said last month,following King’s supply deal,that the governmenthad an opportunity to deliver cheaper gas to Australian buyers “but they have chosen not to”.

Meanwhile,CSIRO is embarking on a $90 million research mission to tackle the biggest technical challenges facing Australian industries on the path to net zero greenhouse emissions.

Resources Minister Madeleine King cut a deal with gas producers in September.Credit:James Brickwood

The federal government has committed to cut emissions 43 per cent from 2005 to 2030 and the bulk of the reductions will come from switching off coal-fired power plants and industrial polluters switching to clean technology.

But some industries can transition more easily than others.

Transport can switch from petrol cars to electric vehicles and the costs are continuing to fall,but there are currently no large-scale commercially viable green steel plants nor widespread use of feed additives to cutgreenhouse gas-laden burps from Australia’s livestock herds.

“The transformation of these hard to abate industries and regions is critical to our nation’s future prosperity,” CSIRO chief executive Larry Marshall said.

The federal government including the Climate Change Authority will work with CSIRO on solutions.

“There are a lot of opportunities that are presenting themselves for Australian industry,but we won’t just stumble into it,” Husic said. “It’s going to take coordinated work and that’s why it’s good to have the government,CSIRO and industry work together.”

Cut through the noise of federal politics with news,views and expert analysis from Jacqueline Maley. Subscribers can sign up to our weeklyInside Politics newsletter here.

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