A Graceful Green Transition
A Graceful Green Transition

EnergyAustralia has brought forward the closure of Yallourn Power Station in Victoria by four years and is building a new 350MW battery storage facility in the same region. As it switches to cleaner energy, the company is determined to secure the best outcomes for its employees, the community, and the national energy market.

By Liz Westcott, Energy Executive, EnergyAustralia

 

After decades of faithful service, Yallourn Power Station in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley will be retired in mid-2028, four years ahead of schedule.

 

The transition to a clean energy future in Australia matters. We believe the best way for it to succeed is with a considerate and balanced plan.

 

By supporting people in the Latrobe Valley and locking in new energy storage, we hope to give confidence to the communities we serve through the smoothest transition possible.

 

Putting employees first

EnergyAustralia has committed to a multimillion-dollar support package to help workers at the power station and mine plan, reskill, or retrain.

 

Yallourn’s retirement will mean different things to different people. It is our job to ensure the approach is a respectful and collaborative one.

 

Our support package will include training and skills development, career planning, assistance for redeployment, and financial counselling. We want Yallourn workers to have a say in how this support is delivered, and we have launched a process to understand their individual needs.

Caring for the community

It is always our goal to be a good neighbour for those living near where our assets are based. At Yallourn, we will be present and available to the local community. We’ve held forums and plan on smaller face-to-face sessions so that residents and different interest groups are clear on our plans.

 

Our commitment to the social development of the Latrobe Valley region remains, including our community grant and sponsorship programmes. Our power station maintenance programmes which involve local suppliers and additional workers will also continue.

Yallourn Power Station
EnergyAustralia works with the communities around Yallourn to better understand and manage the impact of its closure.

A world-beating facility

With Yallourn coming out of the system, it is only right for something else to enter the system to help maintain its security and reliability.

 

EnergyAustralia has committed to building a utility-scale battery storage facility that will provide an economic boost for the Gippsland region. Scheduled to be commissioned by the end of 2026, the project will help secure Victoria’s energy supply and provide more renewable energy.

 

Sharing a location with EnergyAustralia’s Jeeralang gas-fired power station in the Latrobe Valley, the Wooreen battery storage facility will be 350MW and will provide energy for up to four hours at a time.

 

It will be larger than any battery storage facility operating in the world today.

 

The advantages of battery storage facilities in the formation of a modern energy system are immense. They store electricity at times when lots of renewable energy is being produced. They also provide a fast response – the quick release of stored energy during periods of high demand helps maintain supply and keep costs down for customers.

How Wooreen battery storage facility works

Wooreen battery storage system

 

 

Wooreen: Meaning and origin

The battery’s name, Wooreen, comes from the Gunaikurnai language and means "light". EnergyAustralia was gifted this name by Aunty Doris Paton and the Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation. We understand that acknowledging the Traditional Country and First Nations peoples of the battery’s location is the right thing to do. And naming the facility in a language name is one way of showing this respect. 

Towards a carbon zero future

By providing ample notice ahead of Yallourn’s retirement in mid-2028 and introducing new battery storage facility, EnergyAustralia is making good on its ambition to be carbon neutral by 2050.

 

In closing Yallourn, we will reduce our carbon dioxide emissions by more than 60% compared with today’s levels. To put that in context, Yallourn’s closure will remove around 13 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year, equivalent to the planting of some 300,000 trees.

 

Leaving no one behind

For more than a century Victoria’s Latrobe Valley has generated electricity to heat, cool, light up, and power millions of homes and businesses across the state and the country.

 

The energy system is changing, and it is our responsibility to lead the transition to cleaner energy in a way that does not leave the workforce or the community behind. At the same time, we want to maintain the same reliable and affordable access to energy for everyone.

 

The challenge to getting this right has always been planning: By getting the right balance and mix for a modern energy system in the most cost-effective manner.

 

Success will give each home and business in Australia access years from now to energy that is reliable, affordable, and above all, clean. At EnergyAustralia, we will continue to play our role in turning that ambition into a reality.