The private sector owner of the Mt Piper coal fired power station in NSW, EnergyAustralia has confirmed it is pursuing construction of a big battery and pumped hydro power plant at the site.
Earmarked by the Coalition as the site for nuclear power stations, Mt Piper’s coal boilers are not planned for retirement until 2040, making it part of the medium term energy future.
The Operations and Projects Executive of EnergyAustralia Sue Elliott (pictured) said the company was progressing two key opportunities to repurpose Mt Piper’s existing infrastructure and make use of existing assets.
Elliott said: “We are progressing planning for a Lake Lyell Pumped Hydro Project.
“We see that pumped hydro has a really important and unique role to play in the new energy system and, as such, we believe that specific government support mechanisms are required to underpin pumped hydro projects.
“We’re also planning a 500 megawatt, four hour Mount Piper Battery Energy Storage System right here on site to take advantage of transmission assets, and we look forward to continuing to work with government on bringing that to fruition.”
Earller this month the Lake Lyell project was declared as Critical State Significant Infrastructure (CSSI), giving it status as a high-priority infrastructure initiative that is essential to the state for economic, social, or environmental reasons.
The confirmations came during the second stop on what appears to be the Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen’s tour of sites proposed by the Coalition as nuclear power stations – in which he is highlighting the energy transition already underway.
On Thursday Bowen was at Port Augusta in South Australia where he inspected progress on a green cement and green concrete plant being built at the former Playford power station site by the Hallett Group.
However while the Playford station is closed, Mt Piper is NSW’s most flexible coal-fired power station and an example of the ‘energy transition in motion’, according to Elliott.
She said: “Traditionally Mount Piper has been a full-load, continuous‑load power station, and today it’s becoming much more flexible.
“It now operates during the day and seasonally depending on renewable availability in the market.
“Mount Piper has a critical role to play in supporting the transition backing up renewables whilst we await the delivery and readiness of storage assets and transmission assets in the new energy system.”
EnergyAustralia also believes that gas-fired power stations play a key role in firming renewables, with the company last month commissioning the Tallawarra B gas-fired power station.
Elliott said: “As Australia enters into the transformation of its energy system, arguably one of the biggest engineering projects ever undertaken in this nation, EnergyAustralia believes that working closely with government and industry is critical to create the energy – investment certainty required to deliver these assets.
“Opportunities like today where industry, government and community come together are paramount to bring that to fruition.”
Further reading:
Hallett Group doubles down on decarbonisation at Port Augusta
Picture: Energy Australia/Sue Elliott