Premier Peter Malinauskas has hit out at “eco-purists” who oppose the use of natural gas, warning they should be “careful what they wish for”.

The South Australian Premier addressed The Australian’s Energy Nation Forum on Wednesday, arguing that expanding natural gas extraction was vital to Australia’s energy transition.

“If you weed out the policies that favour ignorance or idiocy and focus on a practical transition, every serious plan requires at least two things in abundance, the first is copper and the second is natural gas,” Mr Malinauskas said.

“For the sake of the economy and our decarbonisation aspirations, our nation needs a lot more gas, and we need it urgently.”

Premier Malinauskas said this was why his government supported Santos’ Narrabri Gas project in NSW, “despite the e

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