NSW Premier Morris Iemma has conceded that he may not have the numbers in parliament to transfer $10 billion worth of electricity assets to the private sector.
But he says he won't quit, even if the privatisation bill is defeated when parliament returns in September.
"If people think that I'm simply going to walk away, or that if it's defeated, I'll resign, that's not the case," Mr Iemma told The Weekend Australian. "If the legislation is defeated, we have to work out what our options are."
In a further sign that he has no intention of abandoning either the premiership or the privatisation - despite a campaign of destabilisation by union and party officials - Mr Iemma yesterday took the first step towards folding the retail arm of state-owned electricity distributor Integral Energy into the operations of state-owned generator Eraring Energy.
In the first physical manifestation of the electricity selloff, 69 staff from Integral's accounting and marketing divisions were yesterday seconded to Eraring.
Along with the transfer of Integral's revenues and expenses to Eraring, the move means a share float of a new, vertically integrated company could take place as early as the second half of next year.
"This step needs to be taken now to ensure the new entity has 12 months of trading and operational performance data required by investors ahead of any public share offer," Mr Iemma said.
"The steps being undertaken do not require legislative approval and will ensure the timetable for our plan to secure the state's energy future can be achieved once we are ready to proceed."
