Snowy Hydro says independent modelling from Baringa Partners confirms the Snowy 2.0 pumped hydro megaproject is critical to maintaining reliable electricity supply and market stability after coal-fired power stations retire.
The project, which is the subject of much scrutiny given its budget and schedule blowouts, will provide 350GWh of energy storage—the equivalent of 26 million home batteries.
Related article: Snowy 2.0 will last 150 years and help to push out gas
Baringa’s white paper says that without the massive 350GWh of deep storage offered by Snowy 2.0, the National Electricity Market (NEM) faces a critical reliability gap short-duration batteries cannot bridge.
A scenario mapped by Baringa, when ageing coal-fired plants are retired, shows having short-duration batteries as the NEM’s only form of storage would place unprecedented stress on grid stability and drive increases in wholesale prices during wind and solar droughts. With Snowy 2.0’s ability to generate continuously for a week, the system remains stable and average wholesale prices are suppressed by $7,095/MWh.
Snowy Hydro CEO Dennis Barnes said, “Short-term batteries are the sprint-runners, vital for daily balancing, but only Snowy 2.0 can run the marathon.
“Batteries are the best value way of providing short-duration storage, but they cannot see the grid through the multi-day wind droughts that Australia has seen before and will inevitably see again.
“Without Snowy 2.0, grid resilience is heavily compromised, threatening continuous supply during prolonged lulls in wind and solar generation. Snowy 2.0 will provide 350GWh of storage, the equivalent of 26 million home batteries, and the scale required to ensure a reliable power supply for every Australian.”
Barnes said Snowy 2.0 was a 150-year investment in Australia’s energy sovereignty.
“Like the original Snowy Scheme, which still underpins energy reliability more than 50 years after its construction, the pumped hydro expansion will be a national asset powering Australia for generations,” he said.
Despite numerous delays plaguing Snowy 2.0, Snowy Hydro said the project was hitting significant delivery milestones.
Tunnel boring machine (TBM) Lady Eileen Hudson last month completed the six-kilometre tailrace tunnel connecting Talbingo Reservoir to the project’s underground power station complex. This is the TBM’s second tunnel, after completing an almost three-kilometre access tunnel earlier in the project.
Related article: Snowy 2.0 project welcomes new TBM Monica
Excavation of the power station caverns, almost a kilometre underground and with a volume greater than the Sydney Opera House, is almost complete and the project is readying for the start of power station construction.
Snowy 2.0 is now due for completion in 2028.
