The battery at the site of the decommissioned Hazelwood power station has the capacity to power about 75,000 homes for an hour during the evening peak.
Engie, who own the Hazelwood site (with some partners) are on the hook to “rehabilitate” it when they are done burning coal.
And they are definitely done burning coal, because it’s no longer cost effective to maintain the old equipment and it’s definitely too risky to build new burners.
And in the short term, they are still a power company, so why not plonk their new batteries there, the site they own and which already has big connections to the power networks.
Engie, who own the Hazelwood site (with some partners) are on the hook to “rehabilitate” it when they are done burning coal.
And they are definitely done burning coal, because it’s no longer cost effective to maintain the old equipment and it’s definitely too risky to build new burners.
So here’s what they plan for the site long term: https://www.hazelwoodrehabilitation.com.au/
And in the short term, they are still a power company, so why not plonk their new batteries there, the site they own and which already has big connections to the power networks.
Hopefully it helps retrain workers too. God knows we could do with a load more sparkies at any rate.