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AAP
AAP
Politics
Maeve Bannister, Andrew Brown and Paul Osborne

No compo for fossil fuel firms: Greens

The Greens will seek an energy bill freeze, higher taxes for corporations and support for households to switch out expensively-run, "dirty" appliances in talks to pass the Albanese government's relief measures.

The minor party's senators and MPs met virtually on Tuesday ahead of parliament returning on Thursday for a special sitting to debate and pass the laws.

Labor will need the votes of either the coalition or the Greens plus one crossbencher to get the laws through the Senate.

Greens leader Adam Bandt told reporters the minor party did not support coal corporations receiving government compensation.

"It is disappointing that the government still doesn't want to put a windfall tax on these coal and gas corporations and freeze power bills ... we're going to keep pushing," he said.

Mr Bandt said the government had not yet released the draft legislation but his party would push for relief measures such as a freeze on power bills at pre-crisis levels.

"My efforts over the next 24 hours will be to talk to the government in good faith ... where we get at least some of those concerns addressed," he said.

"We want to see more money in people's pockets, we want to see coal and gas corporations paying more tax and we want to see the government step in to help people replace their expensive-to-run appliances with cheaper, cleaner ones so that power bills stay down," he said.

It is still possible Labor could secure the backing of the coalition for the bill, which will provide for a 12-month price cap of $12 per gigajoule through a "gas market emergency price order", applying to uncontracted gas offered on the wholesale market.

The laws also set up mandatory "gas market codes" to regulate the supply and purchase of gas, which the government will implement in relation to wholesale gas.

At the same time, the federal government will work with NSW and Queensland on a temporary coal price cap of $125 a tonne.

Opposition energy spokesman Ted O'Brien said the coalition was "open minded" to the energy relief measures but was still sceptical about some of the plans put forward.

"We are on the side of Australian families and businesses," he told ABC Radio.

"We want to see the details but what I'm saying is we're very open minded to it."

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said the government's energy plan could lead to higher bills.

"This is an intervention into the market, which is actually going to make it worse for families and for small businesses," he said.

"What the government should be doing is putting more supply into the system, working with the companies, not against them, because I fear in this package that it's going to actually drive prices up."

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said while the government was looking at long-term options to getting more supply in the market, the price caps would bring short-term relief to customers including manufacturers.

"It will allow for profits to continue to be made and it's a reasonable measure and it's a responsible measure," he told Sydney radio 2SM.

Industry Minister Ed Husic said the government would be watching the industry closely following suggestions the price caps would encourage gas companies to put more of their supply on the spot market.

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