The project is under construction and targets production of first ammonia from 2025 and lower carbon ammonia from 2026.

Related article: Woodside acquires US LNG group Tellurian

Woodside CEO Meg O’Neill said, “This transaction positions Woodside in the growing lower carbon ammonia market. The potential applications for lower carbon ammonia are in power generation, marine fuels and as an industrial feedstock, as it displaces higher-emitting fuels.

“This acquisition is a material step towards delivering our Scope 3 investment and abatement targets. Phase 1 has the capacity to abate 1.6Mtpa of CO2-e and with the addition of Phase 2 the Project has the capacity to abate 3.2Mtpa CO2-e, or over 60% of our Scope 3 abatement target.”

News of the acquisition comes after the WA Environmental Protection Authority (EPA)  rejected Woodside’s proposed Browse Gas project—Australia’s largest untapped conventional gas field located off the coast of the pristine Kimberley region in Western Australia.

Related article: Woodside leads carbon capture startup’s $10M capital raise

The EPA found Woodside’s proposal had unacceptable potential impacts on endangered Pygmy Blue Whales, the threat to endangered Green Turtles and the risk of pollution and oil spills at the highly biodiverse and fragile Scott Reef.

Only two other oil and gas proposals have been recommended against by the Western Australian EPA since the mid-1980s.

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Related article: Ark gets planning approval for Tasmanian wind farm

The 312MW Wimmera Plains Energy Facility is located 10km north-east from Horsham and includes up to 52 wind turbines connecting to an existing 220kV transmission line.

The project also includes a 100MW Battery Energy Storage system which can store up to 400MWh of dispatchable energy.

The project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per year, which is equivalent to taking more than 370,000 cars off the road each year.

Related article: Queensland Govt approves massive Tarong West Wind Farm

Plans include 52 wind turbines with a blade-tip height of 247m above the ground. Less than one hectare of native vegetation will be disturbed as a result of the project.

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Ark Energy general manager development for Tasmania Donna Bolton said, “The St Patricks Plains Wind Farm site is an excellent location for wind energy generation. Grid connection is onsite, residual environmental impacts can be managed and the wind resource is excellent.

Related article: Ark Energy withdraws plans for Doughboy Wind Farm

“This project will deliver much needed new renewable electricity generation to help Tasmania benefit from its world leading wind resource and achieve its renewable energy target, as well as bring a wide range of benefits for the local community and region.”

The St Patricks Plains Wind Farm has been in development since 2019 and has undergone several design iterations, including removal of 20 wind turbines to avoid environmental impacts, minimise visual impacts and address community concerns.

“We have worked hard to avoid and minimise potential environmental impacts, and the unavoidable environmental impacts are manageable, as shown by the EPA’s report,” Bolton said.

“The Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagle has been a key species of focus. Proactive avoidance and the latest technology have been combined to achieve the least impact possible to Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagles. Major design revisions have been made to avoid areas used by eagles and the Identiflight curtailment system will be installed across the site to minimise collision risk.

“We will continue to seek to minimise environmental impacts, be a good neighbour to those around the project area, and work diligently to deliver benefits from the project to the local community and wider region.”

Related article: Italy’s Prysmian to supply HVDC cables for Marinus Link

Ark Energy will now consider the conditions issued with the permit approval and awaits a final decision under the EPBC Act from the Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW).

This is the first planning approval in Tasmania for Ark Energy and follows approval earlier this year for its 347MW Bowmans Creek Wind Farm to be located in the NSW Hunter-Central Coast Renewable Energy Zone.

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The contract ensures the design, manufacture, supply and installation for Stage 1 of the Marinus Link interconnector project, a 750MW HVDC cable system.

Related article: Commonwealth agrees to fund 49% of Marinus Link

Marinus Link CEO Caroline Wykamp said, “Prysmian has proven and global expertise in delivering projects like Marinus Link.

“We have booked their most advanced cabling vessel—the Leonardo Da Vinci.

“Marinus Link will enable Tasmania to import excess supply of solar and wind produced interstate, while reserving its hydro and storing the extra energy. Clean hydropower can then feed the national grid when it is needed most, acting as a large battery for the nation.”

The project’s cables span 345km, with 255km undersea across the Bass Strait and 90km underground in Gippsland, Victoria.

It was recently announced that Hitachi Energy’s high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technology has been selected to augment the connection between mainland Australia and Tasmania.

Related article: Hitachi Energy’s HVDC tech selected for Marinus Link

Marinus Link is a cornerstone project of the Australian Government’s Rewiring the Nation Plan and is classified as urgent in the Australian Energy Market Operator’s national energy plan.

The project is jointly owned by the Australian, Tasmanian and Victorian governments.

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State-owned Stanwell is working with global renewable energy developer RES to build the proposed 436.5MW wind farm 30km south-west of Kingaroy.

Related article: Ark Energy withdraws plans for Doughboy Wind Farm

The project will feature 97 wind turbines and produce enough clean energy to power the equivalent of 230,000 homes.

The SARA assessment considered an accommodation strategy for workers to ensure housing supply in the region will not be adversely affected.

SARA has worked closely with the Department of Resources to ensure that the development helps protect important areas of ecological significance including protecting up to 13.47ha of koala habitat.

Conditions have been imposed for offsetting impacts for up to 5.4ha of Koala habitat in addition to requirements to rehabilitate areas cleared during construction, to the greatest extent possible.

Construction is expected to commence from 2025.

Related article: Palmer Wind Farm gets go-ahead in South Australia

Stanwell CEO Michael O’Rourke said, “The Tarong West Wind Farm is a critical part of not only Stanwell’s plan to decarbonise our existing portfolio, but it’s critical to Queensland reaching its renewable energy targets.

“This development approval brings us one step closer to our aim of having 9-10GW of large-scale wind and solar capacity by 2035 and we are continuing to work with RES through the approval processes so we can bring this project to life.”

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HumeLink is a proposed 500kV transmission line that will expand the transmission network in New South Wales, and is an actionable project under the Integrated System Plan. The project will reinforce the grid, and provide electricity customers with increased access to generation and storage opportunities in Southern and Southwest New South Wales.

Related article: UGL and CPB Contractors to construct HumeLink West

AER chair Clare Savage said that after a rigorous assessment the regulator had accepted project costs that were $314.4 million less than what was originally proposed by Transgrid in its application—approving $3,964.8 million in capital expenditure compared with Transgrid’s proposed $4,279.1 million (later revised to $4,173.4 million after accounting for new information).

“While HumeLink is a complex project of national significance, we recognise that it affects landholders and local communities on the transmission route and impacts electricity bills,” Savage said.

“There has been considerable stakeholder interest in this project and a diverse range of views were put forward throughout our consultation process. We valued the input of all stakeholders and sought to balance the breadth of interests and feedback in our decision-making.

“We are conscious that this decision comes at a difficult time for energy consumers, with many customers facing challenges to absorb higher electricity prices in the current economic climate.”

Related article: GenusPlus AND Acciona JV win HumeLink East contract

The AER noted in its decision that it was critical for Transgrid to continue to engage with communities to achieve and maintain their support in delivering the HumeLink project.

Following the AER’s decision to approve reduced costs for Stage 2 of HumeLink, Transgrid will be able to deliver the remainder of the HumeLink project.

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Related article: Ark Energy’s Bowmans Creek Wind Farm gets govt tick

Ark said the project in its “current form” had been withdrawn from the NSW Government’s planning and assessment process. The proposal has also been automatically withdrawn from the federal environmental assessment process managed by the Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW).

Ark Energy maintains the site is an excellent location for wind energy generation, and may reconsider the project with a different design at a later date, and pending further consultation.

“In the event that Ark Energy chooses to recommence development of the project in the future, a new scoping report will be prepared, and the assessment and approval process for the revised project would commence from the beginning,” the company said in a statement.

Earlier this year, Ark Energy withdrew its proposed Wooroora Station Wind Farm in North Queensland from the federal environmental assessment process following indications it was unlikely to be approved due to its proximity to a World-Heritage-listed rainforest.

Related article: Ark Energy scraps proposed Wooroora Station Wind Farm

It also plans to build the 50.4MW Western Plains Wind Farm in north-west Tasmania late last year, saying it wouldl instead focus on developing larger utility-scale wind projects.

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The Mt Weld hybrid power station will include a 24MW wind farm, 7MW solar farm, and a 12MW/12MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS).

Related article: Zenith completes 16.9MW 5B solar farm at Jundee gold mine

The renewable facility will be supported by a 17MW gas-fired power station with 5MW of standby diesel generation. Upon completion, the total installed capacity of the Mt Weld Power Station will be approximately 65MW.

The term of the PPA is 15 years, commencing from commercial operation of the wind farm, which is scheduled to occur in calendar year 2026. The diesel and gas facilities are scheduled to be completed in the first half of calendar year 2025, with solar and BESS to be installed progressively, and full operation expected in calendar year 2026.

The Mt Weld Power Station has been designed to run “engine-off” during periods of high renewable energy production and achieve an average annual renewable energy percentage of up to approximately 70%.

Zenith CEO and managing director, Hamish Moffat said, “As a leading provider of sustainable energy solutions to the Australian resources market Zenith is pleased to be working with Lynas, the world’s only significant producer of separated rare earth materials outside of China, on the high renewable energy fraction hybrid power solution to their Mt Weld operations.

Related article: Zenith Energy wins Independent Power Producer award

“The signing of the Mt Weld Hybrid power station Power Purchase Agreement represents a significant milestone for Zenith Energy, with our contracted Wind Capacity now exceeding 100MW. Zenith looks forward to enabling Lynas to deliver on their productivity and decarbonisation objectives.”

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Related article: RES reveals plans for 1.3GW Cannie Wind Farm in Victoria

The 288MW Palmer Wind Farm will be located between the townships of Palmer and Tungkillo and includes the installation of 40 wind turbines which will connect to South Australia’s electricity network.

The project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 212,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per year, which is equivalent to taking more than 65,000 cars off the road each year.

“The site is already cleared land and used for grazing. The project demonstrates how good site selection can lead to faster environmental approvals,” the government said in a statement.

“Projects need to be placed in the right areas and designed so that their environmental impacts are minimised— as is the case with this wind farm.”

Developer Tilt Renewables said on its website that the wind farm’s design had been changed following community consultation.

“We [changed the] design to reduce the maximum number of turbines from 103 to 40. These fewer, larger turbines could generate a similar level of clean renewable energy while allowing bigger setbacks from existing dwellings and townships.

Related article: Ark Energy’s Bowmans Creek Wind Farm gets govt tick

“Reducing the number of turbines would also shrink the project area by more than 5,000ha and significantly reduce the potential impacts of the approved Palmer Wind Farm.”

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The combined energy storage of the stage one and stage two batteries will be over 2GWh, enabling Origin to help keep the grid stable and support more variable renewable energy coming into the system.

Related article: Origin strikes deal with govt to delay Eraring closure

Origin has executed agreements for equipment supply and construction, with works on the second stage scheduled to begin early in the 2025 calendar year. Stage two is anticipated to come online in the first quarter of the 2027 calendar year.

Origin head of energy supply and operations Greg Jarvis said, “We are pleased to have approved Origin’s third investment in a large-scale battery at one of our existing power stations, which reflects our belief that storage will play an important role in the changing grid by helping to firm up variable supply from wind and solar.

“The second stage of the Eraring battery will be over four-hours duration and it will be capable of absorbing excess solar generation during the day to support reliable energy supply when needed, such as through the evening peak.

“Eraring is a strategic site with high-quality connection infrastructure. Confirmation of the second stage of the Eraring battery development is a key next step as we look to transform the site for the future so it can continue to support the energy transition.”

Battery equipment for stage two of the Eraring project will be supplied by Finnish technology group Wärtsilä, with design and construction services to be provided by Enerven Energy Infrastructure.

Related article: Supernode Battery expanded under new Origin offtake deal

Origin has now committed to more than 1.5GW of large-scale batteries across its three owned projects at Eraring and Mortlake, along with tolling agreements for the offtake of the Supernode Battery stage 1 and 2.

Eraring is Australia’s largest power station and supplies up to a quarter of electricity supply in New South Wales. Eraring is scheduled to close in August 2027, as part of an agreement with the NSW Government to support security of supply through the transition.

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Related article: Edify and Sosteneo partner to build Koorangie ESS

The Tesla Megapacks have arrived and been successfully craned into place at the KESS site, with the Hon. Lily D’Ambrosio MP onsite to help celebrate the milestone.

The Koorangie Energy Storage System is located in North West Victoria, near the town of Kerang.

Construction of the 185MW/370MWh KESS facility is on schedule and charging towards energisation and commercial operations in 2025.

KESS will be able to power 350,000 homes for 2 hours. With its grid forming capabilities, it will liberate significant renewable energy capacity in the region supporting Victoria’s and Australia’s renewable energy transition.

KESS has entered into a 15-year offtake agreement with Shell Energy and in parallel provides critical system strength services through a 20 year System Support Agreement with AEMO.

To finance and deliver the $400 million Koorangie Energy Storage System, one of the largest and most advanced energy storage systems on the network, Edify has partnered with Sosteneo, a specialist infrastructure investor.

Related article: Edify gets $48M funding for Townsville Green Hydrogen Hub

Minister D’Ambrosio said, “Koorangie is a cutting-edge facility that will help Victoria hit our energy storage targets and support our transition to renewable energy that will provide stability to our energy grid regional Victoria.”

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The network

CitiPower moves electricity to and from more than 349,000 homes, businesses and essential services across Melbourne’s Central Business District (CBD) and inner suburbs.

The network also supports a diversity of commercial and industrial customers, ranging from cafes and small businesses to restaurants and major office buildings as well as world-class sporting precincts, public health, education, government and cultural facilities.

The network is made up of more than 4,500km of wires and cables—enough to stretch from Perth to Singapore—and more than 57,500 poles and associated infrastructure. It’s operated and maintained by a team of highly-skilled tradespeople and professionals, committed to providing reliable power to homes and business.

Related article: CitiPower begins Melbourne underground power upgrade

CitiPower services are delivered from a depot in Richmond as well as from a customer contact centre in Bendigo and corporate office in Melbourne.

The network in Melbourne CBD, as with the rest of CitiPower, has an extensive annual maintenance and upgrade program dedicated to ensuring ongoing reliability and safety of the network.

Specifically for the CBD, CitiPower completed works in 2021 to upgrade supply capacity to the northern and eastern CBD, through development of the new Waratah Place zone substation. The works proposed at CitiPower’s Little Queen (LQ) zone substation will provide the same increase in capacity to meet the growing demand across the central and southern CBD for decades to come.

CitiPower head of network planning Andrew Dinning said demand for electricity in the CBD was already high and continually growing.

“Currently, the peak demand for the CBD network is around 500MW,” Dinning said.
“To set that in context, that’s the same as one generating unit at somewhere like the Loy Yang power station, but dedicated to supplying less than three square kilometres of CBD.”

It’s currently expected that demand in the Melbourne CBD will increase by at least 60% over the next 10 years.

Scope of the upgrade

This project is a major $24 million upgrade of the city’s power network to help future-proof it against growing demand. The tunnel upgrade is about developing the tunnel beneath Little Queen Street to make sure it remains a safe and reliable conduit for current and assets.

This work is a precursor to a larger three-year revamp of the nearby LQ zone substation, which will provide greater capacity and flexibility to support both planned new developments in the city and greater electrification of existing customers across the CBD.

The size of CitiPower’s team varies according to what stage of the work is being completed at any one time, but generally consists of 40-45 people. The team is made up of network planners, asset managers and analysts in the early stages, to define the best option to progress with.

Once the preferred solution is defined the project team changes to include project and design managers, civil/geotechnical engineers, electrical design engineers, civil contractors and specialists in equipment installation, along with fitters, testers and cable jointers.

Working in the tunnels

CitiPower works to minimise impacts to customers wherever possible and actively avoids unnecessarily impacting customers. Before upgrading any of its assets, CitiPower will move customers supplied from that asset onto other areas of the network to ensure minimal interruption.

CitiPower has access to a range of tunnels under the Melbourne CBD. Some of these are over 100 years old. The tunnel under Little Queen Street was first built in the 1930s and stretches for 80m.

Interestingly, a tunnel was unearthed during redevelopment of the Southern Cross station nearly 20 years ago that CitiPower repurposed to carry some of its underground cables.
Over the years, these tunnel excavations have yielded some interesting finds that provide a glimpse into Melbourne’s past.

Related article: CitiPower completes major power supply upgrade

“We found a thick road surface under Todd Road in Port Melbourne a few years ago,” a CitiPower spokesperson said.

“Through some research, the team discovered it was the old runway from World War II, where they built aircraft at Fishermans Bend then rolled them out on the runway and flew them to New Guinea.

“Another interesting find was an old cable car system in Lonsdale Street, including the culverts and a gear room that was just buried and abandoned in the city.”

Upgrade schedule

CitiPower expects to complete the tunnel upgrade by October before it begins the electrical upgrade work later this year.

“We expect the major upgrade work at the LQ substation to take up to four years and will include a 12-month design period, before construction and commissioning begin,’’ a spokesperson said.

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Located in the New South Wales Government-designated Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (REZ), the Tallawang hybrid project comprises of 500MWac solar farm and 500MW/1GWh battery energy storage system.

Related article: Enel to acquire 1GW Julia Creek Renewables Project

Strategically placed close to key transmission infrastructure; the project is located on a 1,300ha site, approximately 8km north-west of Gulgong in the Mid-West Regional Council area.

RES Australia CEO Matt Rebbeck said, “We are excited to collaborate with EGPA on the Tallawang Hybrid Renewable Project. This partnership is a testament to our shared commitment to advancing renewable energy initiatives and supporting the NSW Government’s renewable energy goals.

“The Tallawang project not only represents a significant step towards a zero carbon future but also brings economic and social benefits to the local community. We are dedicated to ensuring a seamless integration and successful delivery of this project.”

EGPA CEO Werther Esposito said, “Tallawang is a large-scale and advanced development project, with outstanding resources and key planning and regulatory approvals well progressed. EGPA is accelerating the build out of a portfolio of renewable and storage projects at varying stages of development. We are appreciative of support from our shareholders in achieving this significant acquisition.

Related article: RES reveals plans for 1.3GW Cannie Wind Farm in Victoria

“Tallawang represents an opportunity to secure a project strategically located in a key NSW REZ. We bring a solid track record and strong expertise in delivering renewable energy projects and we look forward to working closely with the local community and other stakeholders, including NSW Government, to deliver this project.”

Enel Green Power Australia (EGPA) is a joint venture company co-owned by Enel Green Power and INPEX Renewable Energy Australia Pty Ltd.

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This licence approval grants RWE an exclusive seven-year seabed right to develop the Kent Offshore Wind Farm project. The approval also allows RWE to apply for a commercial licence to build and operate the wind farm for up to 40 years.

Related article: Germany’s RWE to build Australia’s first eight-hour battery

The lease area awarded to RWE has the potential to host a wind farm with up to 2GW of capacity, enough to power up to 1.6 million Australian homes with green electricity. The site is approximately 67km off the coast and has average water depths of 59m.

The wind farm is expected to become operational in the first half of the 2030s, subject to the timing of the planning and approvals process, secured offtake as well as grid connection.

RWE Offshore Wind CEO Sven Utermöhlen said, “Australia is a very attractive growth market for renewable energy. RWE has been active in the country for 10 years and operates one of Australia’s largest solar farms.

“By securing exclusive seabed rights in the Bass Strait off Gippsland, we are now entering the Australian offshore wind market and will bring our more than 20 years of experience in this field.

Related article: Feasibility tick for six Gippsland offshore wind projects

“With the Kent project, we will work on developing one of the first offshore wind farms off the Australian coast. This is in line with our strategy to grow our renewables portfolio in Australia and the wider APAC region.”

The next step for RWE in the further development of this early-stage project is to carry out studies to help determine the project design and to submit applications for planning permission. RWE will also engage with key stakeholders, First Nations groups and other communities.

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