EOI open for South Australia’s gas-fired power station

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The South Australian Government has called for Expressions of Interest from companies seeking to build the state-owned gas-fired power station.

The EOI for the generator, which would have a capacity of up to 250MW, opened today will remain open for two weeks.

The power station was announced as part of the South Australia’s $550 million energy plan, and is a key component of the government’s plan to “take charge” of the state’s energy future.

Once constructed, the SA Government would be able to dispatch electricity from its own generator, as well as from a grid-scale battery, which was also part of the energy plan.

In February, power was lost to more than 90,000 homes during a heatwave as a result of “unneccesary” load shedding.

Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis said the power station would prevent future load shedding events.

“South Australian businesses shouldn’t be faced with losing power during peak trading periods, and households shouldn’t have to worry about losing electricity supply during sweltering heat,” he said.

“This brand new gas generator will be the first state-owned electricity infrastructure since the Liberals sold ETSA.

“Through this plan we are building generation and storage capacity, using our own procurement to bring additional generation into the market and incentivising the production of more gas to be supplied to local power stations.

“We are taking charge of our energy future to boost competition, improve grid security and put downward pressure on power prices.”

The gas generator will be the first piece of electricity infrastructure built and owned by the state government since the previous Liberal government privatised ETSA 18 years ago.

The generator will be able to startup and dispatch electricity quickly if needed in emergency situations and will also be able to provide grid-stability services year-round.

It is estimated that procurement of the emergency backup generation will cost a total of about $360 million.

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