:format(jpg):watermark(cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/ipmgroup/EF665FJJCNGHFFHRRMWR57UKMI.png,0,30,0)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/ipmgroup/QZHP5VZR3FCJZINJXSNVCKEIMI.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1)
Australia’s largest coal-fired power station will close in 2025, seven years ahead of schedule, its operator said Thursday, saying the facility is no longer viable given the low cost of renewables. Australia is one of the largest coal producers in the world and this polluting fuel is an important source of export revenue for the country.
“Today we flagged the possibility of accelerating the closure of Eraring to mid-2025”Frank Calabria, CEO of Origin Energy, told investors.
“Coal-fired power plants are under increasing and unsustainable pressure from cleaner and cheaper generation, including solar, wind and battery power”he added.
The plant, which was originally scheduled to be decommissioned in 2032, includes four 720-megawatt coal-fired generators and one 42-megawatt diesel generator. It supplies Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales, with around a quarter of its electricity.
The company has a 240 million Australian dollars (109 million euros) project to redevelop the plant and install a large 700 megawatt battery. Origin is the latest Australian energy producer to announce the early closure of coal assets, despite the Conservative government’s insistence on supporting new projects in this area.
For families “who depend on the Eraring Power Station for their livelihoods, today’s announcement creates uncertainty for the future”, said union representative Robin Williams. Energy Minister Angus Taylor, who has championed the idea of public investment in new coal-fired power plants, said the early shutdown would be a “disaster”, with high electricity prices.
This decision “threatens the reliability” of the energy supply at “accessible prices”, he said, promising to ensure that the plant is replaced by a structure of the same size.
–
