15 April 2021
One of Australia’s first pumped hydro energy storage projects for several decades is set to commence construction before the end of the month, with project developer Genex announcing it had signed off on the financial contracts need to fund the project.
It means the 250MW/2,000MWh energy storage project, to be built at an old gold mine, is finally ready to go, following several years of development work and battles through delays and uncertainty.
The project is expected to create around 500 jobs in north Queensland, with construction expected to be completed by 2024.
The project will utilise two disused gold mine pits near the central Queensland township of Kidston, providing dispatchable supplies of energy storage, and will be combined with onsite supplies of renewable electricity.
Green light for first new hydroelectricity plant in almost 40 years
A former Queensland gold mining region is set to boost Australia’s first significant hydroelectricity plant in 37 years.
Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has given conditional approval for $47 million in funding for the pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) project at Kidston, a former gold mining community around 200km north of Hughenden in central Queensland.
This project gives the disused open-cut mining ponds a new lease of life. Water will flow from an upper reservoir down a slope and through a turbine to generate electricity before reaching the bottom pool. During times of low demand, renewable energy will pump the water back to the top reservoir.
5 February 2021
The Queensland government has confirmed that it will provide $147 million in funding towards a new transmission network link to Genex’s Kidston pumped hydro project.
Genex is developing a 250MW/2,500MWh pumped hydro storage project at the site of two disused gold mining pits in Kidston in Queensland, which will require a new 186km transmission infrastructure link to connect the project to the main grid.
Genex is aiming to establish the project as part of a new clean energy hub, with plans to co-locate wind and solar projects around the pumped hydro facility.
As a key milestone for the project, the Queensland government confirmed that it would provide $147 million in funding towards the cost of new network infrastructure – a $15 million increase from its preliminary commitment.