Pumped to announce three most promising sites
02 April 2019
Hydro Tasmania has revealed the
three sites selected for further investigation into their
pumped hydro
potential.
The three sites - at Lake Cethana and Lake Rowallan in the North West,
and near Tribute Power Station on the West Coast – were selected from
the original list of 14 potential pumped hydro options around the State.
They emerged as the most promising from the studies carried out over the
last 20 months as part of a $2 million study jointly funded by the
Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and Hydro Tasmania.
The study is part of the
Battery of the Nation initiative.
The next stage involves a more intensive
feasibility study to gather
more detailed information and assess the suitability of each of the
sites for development. This stage will involve engagement with local
communities.
The outcome of this work will be a preferred project that could be taken
forward and be ready to operate when 1200MW of additional Bass Strait
interconnection comes online.
Today’s announcement follows the Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s recent
support for the Battery of the Nation initiative through the
Federal
Government’s Underwriting New Generation Investments (UNGI) program.
The Federal Government also has announced $56 million to fast-track
delivery of the ‘Marinus Link’ project, following the release of an
initial feasibility report demonstrating that the
business case for a
second Bass Strait interconnector stacks up.
These commitments provide a significant boost to the business case for
Battery of the Nation that would see Tasmania making a greater
contribution to the national electricity market.
The three selected pumped hydro sites represent strong and sustainable
development opportunities with the sort of long-term storage options the
future national electricity market will need.
-
Lake Cethana - 12 hours of storage capacity in a new upper reservoir;
-
Lake Rowallan - 24 hours of storage capacity in a new upper reservoir;
-
Tribute - 31 hours of storage by establishing a new connection between Lake Plimsoll and Lake Murchison.
Hydro Tasmania CEO Steve Davy said
it was an exciting time for
Tasmania.
“What we have here are three very strong pumped hydro development
options in the state,” Mr Davy said.
“This puts Hydro
Tasmania in a great position to select one strong development
opportunity that can be ready for more interconnection. We will be
working closely with key stakeholders and local communities during this
next period of investigations.”
Pumped hydro would not only introduce new hydro capacity into the
Tasmanian system but also inject significant investment into local
regions and create new jobs.
--ENDS--
Source: Hydro Tasmania - www.hydro.com.au
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