EnergyAustralia is bringing forward the scheduled closure of its 1,400MW Mount Piper coal-fired power plant in New South Wales to 2040—three years earlier than its scheduled closure in 2043.
The accelerated closure is part of a commitment to exit all coal generation by 2040 as part of its revised emission reduction strategy. EnergyAustralia has set targets including reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, reduce direct CO2 emissions by more than 60 per cent on 2019-20 levels in 2028-29, and to transition out of coal assets by 2040.
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EnergyAustralia managing director Mark Collette said: “The clean energy transformation is accelerating, with more renewable, storage and flexible energy technology available at lower costs than ever before. Our Climate Change Statement shares our pathway to net zero.”
“Our approach continues to be one of long-term planning, where we consult with governments and communities as we design and deliver our transition—while ensuring our 2.4 million customers maintain access to reliable and affordable energy,” Collette said.
“One of the pivotal changes to EnergyAustralia’s climate statement is a commitment to develop a plan for how we transition out of coal. This means an earlier retirement date for Mt Piper power station in New South Wales.
“The energy transition has significant impacts for our power station workers and our local communities. While Mt Piper’s ultimate retirement date will be determined by several factors, we are committed to long-term planning and supporting the transition for our workers and our local communities.
“For our customers we need to ensure that we can maintain reliable, affordable and low emissions energy as the system transitions. This is a real-world challenge that we must meet by employing a range of technologies.
“We have, and will continue to make, significant investments as part of our commitment towards reaching net zero emissions.
“This includes projects such as our carbon neutral gas and hydrogen power plant in New South Wales, Tallawarra B, and the Wooreen battery at Jeeralang in Victoria,” Collette said.
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The announcement is coordinated with the broader CLP Group commitment to an updated Climate Vision 2050 for its regional portfolio, which sets more ambitious decarbonisation targets on the path to becoming net zero by 2050.
EnergyAustralia will not build another coal-fired power plant in Australia, it said.
The accelerated closure for Mount Piper follows an announcement in March that EnergyAustralia would close its 1,480MW brown coal-fired Yallourn power plant in Victoria by 2028 instead of 2032.
