Queensland will be home to the world’s “largest” pumped hydro scheme and stop “regular reliance” on coal by 2035, under a $62 billion energy plan announced by the Palaszczuk government.
remier Annastacia Palaszczuk unveiled the state government’s new 10-year energy plan, which she said was estimated to support nearly 100,000 jobs by 2040, in her CEDA State of the State address.
She also said the state government’s new renewable energy targets — of 70 per cent by 2032 and 80 per cent by 2035 — will be legislated, and Queensland’s coal-fired powers stations will progressively become “clean energy hubs”.
We must invest now. Not just for our climate," she said.
“We must address this issue at the same time we focus on new job opportunities to bring everyone along with the clean energy industrial revolution at our doorstep.”
The $62 billion of investment up to 2035 would be between the public and private sectors, Ms Palaszczuk said, including a “new down payment [today] of $4 billion committed by our government over the next four years”.
The government said “just over half” of the $34 billion funding for the new power generation was expected to come from the state government.
“This will be factored into our borrowings and the modelling supports us,” she added.
She said a detailed treasury analysis found the overall investment would not affect the Queensland’s credit rating and would “still mean our net debt is lower than New South Wales or Victoria”.
Ms Palaszczuk said the Queensland government would like to see contributions from the federal government, especially on the hydro projects.
“We’ll be having detailed conversations with our colleagues, but my conversations with the prime minister are encouraging,” she said.
“Then, of course, looking at partnerships with the private sector.”
The energy plan includes two pumped hydros by 2035: the first at Borumba Dam, and a second site, announced on Wednesday, situated 70 kilometres west of Mackay.
Known as the Pioneer-Burdekin pumped hydro project, Ms Palaszczuk said “I prefer to call it the battery of the north”.
“It will be the largest pumped hydro energy storage in the world, with 5 gigawatts of 24-hour storage and the potential for stage 1 to be completed by 2032,” she said.
“I would like you to picture that these combined projects would position Queensland’s hydro storage as a percentage energy use above Europe, China or the US.
These are projects of national significance on a scale not seen since the construction of Snowy Hydro — bigger than Snowy Hydro."
She also said there would be a new transmission “super grid” to connect renewable storage with established regional centres.
Currently about 21.4 per cent of electricity used in the state comes from renewables.
Ms Palaszczuk said the state could not reach net zero without storing renewable energy to make it reliable.
“And with climate change there will be more unseasonal rain and other weather events that impact on the reliability of renewables,” she said.
“These events can last for days — current battery technologies can’t at scale.
“That’s why more pumped hydro energy storage is needed.”
Both sites will be subject to environmental assessments.
Brisbane, Queensland – 3 February 2023 – Airlie Energy announced today that it had successfully flowed gas from the Moranbah Coal Measures in both Mt St Martin 3 and Mount St Martin 4 vertical wells in ATP688.
Queensland will be home to the world’s “largest” pumped hydro scheme and stop “regular reliance” on coal by 2035, under a $62 billion energy plan announced by the Palaszczuk government.
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