Victoria is looking for new employment opportunities in the Latrobe Valley with "considerable speed" ahead of the potential closure of the Hazelwood coal-fired power station.
Premier Daniel Andrews is personally overseeing a task force looking for new jobs in the economically depressed valley region in case Hazelwood's French owner, Engie, shuts the mine and power station.
Reports in the French media have said the decision has been made to shut the site, but Engie has repeatedly said it is still considering its options.
"They are considering the issue of closure, they're working it through at board level and they haven't made a decision yet," Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas told reporters in Melbourne.
The treasurer said Labor's task force had been up and running for more than a month.
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"We're moving at considerable speed - that's the way the premier operates," Mr Pallas said.
He said unemployment was already an issue in the valley and it would need to be addressed regardless of whether Hazelwood closed.
"The budget and the money attached to (the task force) will depend upon the merit of the ideas that come forward," he said.
Shadow treasurer Michael O'Brien said Labor's tripling of the brown coal tax and push for a 40 per cent renewable energy target were forcing Engie's hand.
Mr O'Brien said closing Hazelwood could see a 25 per cent rise in Victorian power prices.
