Eraring Coal Plant Closure Extended by Two Years Amid Blackout Fears

Australia’s biggest coal-fired power plant, Eraring, will delay its closure by another two years following fresh warnings that the electricity grid is under-prepared to manage its imminent retirement without worsening the threat of blackouts. Origin Energy, which owns the 2880-megwawatt Eraring generator on the shores of Lake Macquarie about 150 kilometres north of Sydney, had intended to close the plant in August next year, but on Tuesday said it had agreed to keep all four of its units running until 2029. The extension would provide more time for renewable energy, storage assets such as batteries and hydroelectric dams and new power lines to be built to compensate for its closure, Origin chief executive Frank Calabria said. “Good progress is being made on the delivery of new energy infrastructure including major transmission works and projects like our large-scale battery at Eraring, but it has become clear Eraring power station will need to run for longer to support secure and stable power supply,” he said. Origin last year struck a deal with NSW Energy Minister Penny Sharpe to delay Eraring’s closure from 2025 to 2027 amid concerns the grid was not ready to handle its exit, but expectations have been building across the industry that the company may be required to push back its plan once again. Loading Although enough renewables and power lines are now on track to be delivered in time to replace Eraring’s capacity in 2027, officials from the Australian Energy Market Operator have become increasingly worried about a lack of infrastructure required to maintain the safe and stable flow of electricity to protect the grid from sudden blackouts. To run smoothly, power grids must not only match supply and demand, but also maintain “system security”, including inertia, which comes from the steady frequency that has traditionally been provided by the spinning turbines of gas, coal and pumped hydro plants. The continued operation of Eraring puts has angered renewable energy advocates and climate campaigners. Coal is a dominant source of greenhouse gas emissions that the world must phase out to help avert catastrophic global warming.