A former power station site at Lake Macquarie has been identified officially as the preferred location for a 700-megawatt super battery.
A scoping report by EnergyCo lodged with the Department of Planning this week identifies the former Lake Munmorah Power Station site as the preferred location for the NSW Government’s Waratah Super Battery project.
There’s a 15-hectare area on the site that was previously used as a stockpile area for coal for the former power station which is thought to be the ideal location for the Critical State Significant infrastructure.
The Lake Munmorah Power Station operated for 50 years before it was closed in 2012. The site has been substantially cleared since then including the two huge towers which were demolished so the major construction works would involve earthworks and site re-grading for drainage, establishment of slabs to support battery modules, power conversion systems and transformer structures, delivery, installation and electrical fit-out of the battery modules, power conversion systems and transformers and installation of a 330kV overhead transmission line from the BESS substation to the existing Munmorah Substation.
The Waratah Super Battery project would create up to 150 construction jobs during the approximate 18-month construction period, and approximately 10-15 jobs on site once operational
Origin Energy is planning a similar 700-megawatt battery project at their Eraring Power Station site which is set to close in 2025.
Both battery projects would help fill the gap that will be left when Eraring closes as well as other Hunter power stations like Liddell at Muswellbrook.
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