vales point power station closure

With this acquisition we will significantly strengthen our presence in Australia, said Sev.en chief executive Alan Svoboda. The Stop the Sale of Vales Point Power Station and Close It Down petition to Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers & NSW Treasurer Matt Kean was written by Future Sooner and is in the category Were working to restore it. It is acidic, has an unpleasant odour and is highly corrosive. Alinta Energys Hong Kong-based owner Chow Tai Fook Enterprises is understood to have fielded approaches for the Australian business, which includes the large Loy Yang B coal power generator in Victoria. This will benefit customers, employees and system security for all energyusers.. Sev.en has reputation for keeping old and polluting power stations open longer than their use-by date and has indicated the same for Vales Point. Strict new operating limits for Vales Point Power Station from 1 January. The Vales Point coal-fired power station near the shores of Lake Macquarie, in NSW.Credit:James Whelan. The big energy companies are also feeling the pressure from the Morrison government over the proposed closure dates for older coal-fired power stations. Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings. While the Chinese government has signalled it will restrict coal lending, the country has yet to formally limit its investment in coal plants, the IEEFA report said. It is also gearing up to invest more in the business as it seeks approval for a license to allow mining to continue until 2029. The sale reportedly netted Delta $200m despite the company paying only $1m to buy it from the NSW government in 2015, prompting the states opposition to accuse the Coalition of having dudded taxpayers over the sale. 287 Elizabeth Street Its a two years exemption, then we can apply for another period of time. The EPA has the chance to take a good look at this before issuing the new owners with a licence to pollute, she said. (Delta Electricity have also flagged the possibility of the proposed plant being built on the the site of the nearby Liddell power station, which is slated for closure in 2022. The black coal operators run at a much higher short-run marginal cost and so those nearing the end of their technical lives may be re-evaluating their closure dates, Mr Allen said. Munmorah power station - Global Energy Monitor This site uses "cookies" to give you the best experience on this website. AGL Energy announced it would move the. Vales Point is located on the southern shore of the lake, near the township of Mannering Park. Delta Electricity and Mr St Bakers Energy Innovation Fund did not respond to calls for comment. Cockle Creek Power Station - Wikipedia We will not spam you or sell your details. [9][10][11], Vales Point Power Station was used as the location for the Midnight Oil US Forces music video.[12][13]. The proposed plant would adjoin the existing 1320 MW Vales Point power station owned by Delta Electricity. The power station doesnt currently have a valid air pollution licence. We oppose this sale as it is NOT in the local, state or national interest: We make strategic investments with long-term commitment.. fair dinkum" baseload power generation after the Federal Government lost a public battle with generator AGL over the closure of Liddell power station in 2022. Sign up to Guardian Australia's Morning Mail, Our Australian morning briefing email breaks down the key national and international stories of the day and why they matter. Delta Energys plans for Vales Point power station at Mannering Park will go unchanged despite the announcement by Origin Energy on February 17 that it will close Eraring Australias largest power station seven years early. Delta said it did not make financial sense to proceed with the upgrade with the smaller grant amount, given ongoing uncertainty in the energy market and the looming closure of the power station, currently slated for 2029. Our Morning Edition newsletter is a curated guide to the most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Federal Budget 2020: 'Scandalous' Vales Point coal project slammed NSW power station given shorter deadline on emissions To learn more about how we use information collected with cookies, please read our Privacy Policy. However, a 2015 report from the state government's Coal Innovation Fund says the CCS . Yalloun Power Station closure to put Newcastle's Vales Point in The EPA also stipulated that Delta must investigate, mitigate and report on the causes of NOx emissions when the 1320-megawatt generator operates at less than half its capacity. To disable your cookies, please click on Settings. Tap into Getty Images' global scale, data-driven insights, and network of more than 340,000 creators to create content exclusively for your brand. Coal plants list deadlines when their operating life is set to cease, but Dr Mountain said Victoria has secured a valuable guarantee that Yallourn will be available to produce until 2028, and if the company brings forward closure the state will receive compensation. The Vales Point power station has been operating on the shores of Lake Macquarie since the 1960's and was constructed before NSW environmental protection laws came into effect. . 15 December 2021. Future Sooner, local residents and health professionals are deeply concerned if this sale goes ahead it will extend the life of this filthy, old, polluting coal-fired power station and prolong the damage that is already affecting our health, said Gary Blaschke OAM, resident of Lake Munmorah, cancer sufferer and Future Sooner spokesperson. One is electrolysis that uses electricity to split water, which can be powered by renewables in an emissions-free process and is known as green hydrogen. The Lake Macquarie community and the Lake itself has long suffered as a result of pollution from the Vales Point power station. It leaves the Morrison governments UNGI program has still having supported no new generation investments, despite being first announced in October 2018, and announcing a dozen shortlisted projects more than two years ago. Analysts identified particular economic risk for Vales Point coal power near Newcastle, the same region where NSW Energy Minister Matt Kean will today announce a $70 million fund to grow a green hydrogen industry, which he said would bring jobs and growth to the region. Its been a double whammyin the last couple of days first Wallarah 2, which is the Central Coasts Adani, and now this, another coal-fired power station proposal., Read more:Department of Planning gives green light for Vales Point solar energy project. (NB only name and email is required to sign the petition - contact details are optional), You can further help this campaign by sponsoring it. The transaction still needs to be completed, with approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board outstanding. Delta Electricity knocked back in February a $9 million government grant to upgrade one of the plants turbines. We care about the protection of your data. Vales Point was commissioned in 1978, and its two turbines generate 1,320 megawatts of electricity, accounting for 11 percent of NSWs energy. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again. Cooking with gas: How bad for your health is it, really? Leading Edge Energy is an energy brokerage firm in Australia that specialises in energy cost reduction, solar and storage procurement, electricity and natural gas-use monitoring and reporting for commercial and industrial clients. . The expectation has been that the power station would close in 2029 and the clean-up could begin., Vales Point on southern Lake Macquarie stayed in government hands until 2015, when the Coalition state government controversially sold it to energy entrepreneurs Trevor St Baker and Brian Flannery for $1 million., 167 Parry Street,Hamilton East, NSW, 2303, AboutCampaigningResearch & ReportsSubmissionsVolunteerHCEC NewsMedia ReleasesEventsContact UsCommittee Records, Barrington - Hawkesbury Climate Corridors Alliance, Water pollution Datawatch: NSW power stations. The Liddel power station in the NSW Hunter is already set to close in 2023, but the report said at least one more closure in the state is likely before 2025. EnergyAustralia announced on Wednesday its Yallourn coal plant would close in 2028, four years ahead of the previous deadline. The power stationed operated from 11 March 1927 until March 1976. air pollution exemption granted to Vales Point power station by the NSW EPA was successfully challenged by environment and legal groups. The facility is old, dirty, and poorly maintained. 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The script is starkly similar when it comes to water pollution from Vales Point, with offsite water contamination from the south-east portion of the ash dump identified in the Environment Protection Licence this year. Renewable energy boom could force coal power to close early, says new The proposed plant would adjoin the existing 1320 MW Vales Point power station owned by Delta Electricity. These fossil fuel power stations burn coal to power steam turbines that generate some or all of the electricity they produce. Unit no. September 2022 Delta Electricity agreed to sell to Czech company, Sev.en Global Investments. Childhood asthma in the region has also been found to be extremely high (50% greater than in Sydney in spite of city transport fumes) and there is strong evidence that students who attend schools within a 10 Km radius of a coal fired power station have a reduction in learning outcomes due to the emissions from burning coal. Environment groups say an ageing coal-fired power station in New South Wales that sold for hundreds of millions of dollars may be operating in breach of the states clean air laws. Delta Electricity turns down $8.7 million grant for Vales Point In a letter obtained by RenewEconomy, Delta told the department that the funding was below the amount of funding the company had requested and left the company carrying too much of the cost. Mr Taylor set a January 23 deadline for 24 hour baseload reliable projects eligible for government underwriting. Vales Point is located on the southern shore of the lake, near the township of Mannering Park. Vales Point provides 11% of NSW electricity. These are known as blue hydrogen. Goldman Sachs said Vales Point, backed by energy mogul Trevor St Baker, was facing closure potential. We will continue to invest in the station both for ongoing energy needs and for system security, said the spokesperson. But it also represents a significant expansion of Sev.en in Australias coal power sector beyond its interest in Queenslands InterGen, with the suggestion that further investments in the domestic energy sector may be on the cards. Early closure of Australia's largest coal-fired plant could create Key points: Energy Australia will build a 350 megawatt, utility-scale battery in the Latrobe Valley by the end of 2026 The giant coal-fired Yallourn plant has been operating for 47 years Brisbane-based energy consultant Trevor St Baker and coal baron Brian Flannery. The operator applied for an exemption granted in December 2021 with a reduction variation and additional conditions imposed by the NSW Environment Protection Agency. [2] However, in December 2021, the value of the plant was cut to $156 million and the annual profit was reduced 93% to $9.3 million. Mr St Baker would not reveal the price of the deal, but said we didnt get close to $700 million. Vales Point Power Plant is owned by Delta Electricity, but in September the company announced that the plant is being sold to Czech family investment group Sev.En Global Investments. The coal-fired Vales Point power plant in New South Wales must cut nitrogen oxide emissions within two years or may face early closure after a ruling by the Environment Protection Authority. A Morrison government plan to fund upgrades at the Vales Point coal fired power station fell through after the government offered insufficient funding for the upgrades to take place, with owners Delta Electricity warning the plant could close early, documents obtained under FOI show. [1], In 2017 it was valued at $732 million, and was estimated to make part-owner energy entrepreneur and former National Party candidate Trevor St Baker a half billionaire. The sale price was not included in the press statement released on Saturday, December 17. Vales Point was commissioned in 1978, and its two turbines generate 1,320 megawatts of electricity, accounting for 11 percent of NSW's energy. The other legacies of coal power include environmental and community impact that cannot be ignored as the closure of power stations take place in NSW. A spokesperson for Delta Energy said there were no plans for Vales Point to go the same way as Eraring. . Newcastle GP andpublic health academic Dr Ben Ewaldsaiddata from existing Hunter and Central Coast power stations provided more evidence of the need to replace old coal-fired power stations with renewable energy. Vales Point uses salt water from Lake Macquarie for cooling. The Vales Point coal power station was sold by the NSW government in 2015 for just $1 million. The Vales Point Power Plant is currently set for closure in 2029, but the EPA ruling delivered on 28 October 2022 could bring that date forward to 2025. Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. The power station's end of technical life is set for 2029. the practices of Delta Electricity, past and present that are driving a range of water pollution impacts in Lake Macquarie, the sale of the power station to Se.ven Global Investments, Closure planning, decontamination and rehabilitation. In December 2021, the value of the power station was written down to $156 million and in September 2022 Delta Electricity agreed to sell to Czech company, Sev.en Global Investments. Vales Point A (replacement) power station is a proposal by Delta Electricity to build a new 660 MW plant on the site of the demolished Vales Point A plant in New South Wales, Australia. Given that the ongoing operation of the Vales Point power station remains subject to market forces, and noting the current forecast closure date of 2029 may come forward or be deferred on the strength of these market forces, the benefits arising from the remaining life of Vales Point power station and the proposed project have been diminished by the passage of time, Delta said. It has been announced that the ageing Vales Point coal-fired power station on the Central Coast, NSW is to be sold by the Australian Delta Energy to the Czech fossil fuel investment company Sev.en, owned by billionaire Pavel Tyka. Sep 18, 2022 - 3.16pm Energy entrepreneur Trevor St Baker and coal investor Brian Flannery will sell their Vales Point coal-fired power station in NSW for several hundred million dollars to. . The owner blamed the COVID-19 pandemic for reducing demand and an influx of cheaper renewables reducing wholesale electricity prices. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. As outlined in the budget speech and subsequent announcement, the budget allocation has a funding cap of $8.7m, which is below that which Delta requested, leaving a substantially higher quantum of funding by Delta, Delta said in the letter. At home, the National Energy Resources Australia is offering $1.7 million in seed funding for hydrogen business to set up industry hubs, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation has a $300 million fund for hydrogen projects - including those powered by fossil fuels, and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency has $70 million available for green hydrogen projects. DPE is currently assessing an application by Delta to consolidate and expand its Chain Valley and Mannering collieries. Michael Mazengarb is a Sydney-based reporter with RenewEconomy,writing on climate change, clean energy, electric vehicles and politics. A licence granted last year exempts the operators of the Vales Point plant, recently sold to Sev.en Global Investments, from nitrogen oxide pollution standards. In January 2019 St Baker told The Australian that he would submit a proposal to Australia's Minister for Energy, Angus Taylor, for government support from the Underwriting New Generation Investments program for three projects including a new A$2 billion 660 MW black coal plant in NSW's Hunter Valley at the Vales Point A power station site or at AGL's Liddell power station.The report claimed "St Baker has lined up a Chinese joint-venture partner" but did not name the company. Subsequently, St Baker stated that the shortlisted project was for 20 MW upgrades of the two existing turbines at the Vales Point B plant. Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning. In its home market, it runs two coal power generators and two combined heat and power plants. Vales Point 'A' Station was decommissioned in 1989. . [1], In March 2019 Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that Delta Electricity's proposal had been shortlisted but provided no details.[2]. The coal for Vales Point is delivered by conveyor and a balloon loop connection to the Main Northern railway line between Wyee and Morisset. the nominal closure of Vales Point . Vales Point Power Station sale completed Victoria's potential crunch comes with the 2028-29 closure of the Yallourn power plant in the. Health at GoPetition. Vales Point was originally equipped with three turbo-alternators of 200 MW supplied by the English Electric (unit nos. Recent state government announcements in Queensland and Victoria look to cut coal generation out of the energy mix as soon as possible. Wikimedia. On Tuesday Kean said he was still expecting the plant to close by 2029, saying the state had plans in place to ensure that the capacity of Vales Point is replaced by that time. "We predict that gas power station output will fall by 78 per cent and coal output . However. Vales Point Power Station exemption application It is understood that the joint owner of Delta, and significant political donor, Trevor St Baker, had been told informally in early 2020 that it was set to receive $11 million in grant funding from the Morrison government to fund the $20 million turbine upgrade. 4), for a total of 875 MW. The EPA ruling has fuelled concerns that NSW may face an energy supply crunch in the coming years as coal swiftly exits the market. It also followed a dramatic increase in fine particle pollutionconfirmed by Vales Points own data in 2017. Mr St Baker, who bought Vales Point power station from the NSW Government for a song in 2015 and made $113 million in profit on the deal in 2017-18, has outlined plans for a new plant at Liddell or Vales Point as part of a $6 billion proposal for three coal-fired power stations in NSW and Victoria. It is one of the chief causes of yellow-brown smog. In an application to the EPA, the power stations owners had requested a further five-year license exemption which allowed for the emission of more than 800mg per cubic metre of nitrogen oxide (NOx) per day. Trevor St Baker's plans to keep burning coal at Vales Point beyond 2050 For fossil fuel production to be clean carbon capture has to be tacked on to capture the emissions. Access unlimited content, the digital versions of our print editions - Today's Paper, as well as the Newcastle Herald app. The man who bought Vales Point power station from the NSW Government The NSW Government has responded to the closure of Eraring by saying that to ensure energy reliability, it will work with industry partners to install the Waratah Super Battery, a 700MW/1400MWh grid battery, by 2025 to release grid capacity so Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong consumers can access more energy from existing electricity generation.. Coal plant closures loom large as NSW backs hydrogen for the Hunter. Its like selling an unregistered car. Energy Australia to close Yallourn power station early and build 350 (Delta Electricity have also flagged the possibility of the proposed plant being built on the the site of the nearby Liddell power station, which is slated for closure in 2022. Delta also blamed ongoing regulatory and policy uncertainty, which it said, does not represent an appropriate investment environment.. Mr St Bakers proposal for a singleNSW plant and two new power stations in Victorias Latrobe Valleywas slammed by environment and community groups, who said the high-efficiency, low-emission plants were only one-third less polluting than highly polluting old power stations on the proposed sites. The sale, which was handled by RBC Capital Markets, takes Mr St Baker out of coal power at a sizeable profit on paper. Australia might face electricity supply shortages - AEMO News and analysis for the clean energy economy. Vales Point Power Station sale completed December 18, 2022 by Merilyn Vale Sev.en Global Investments has announced it has completed its acquisition of Delta Electricity Pty Ltd, the parent company of the Vales Point Power Station and the Chain Valley Colliery. The project was moved to Vales Point Power Station in 2012, after Munmorah closed. Eraring and Vales Point power stations could be running multi-million dollar annual losses by 2025, the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis report found.