September 2022 Delta Electricity agreed to sell to Czech company, Sev.en Global Investments. We will continue to invest in the station both for ongoing energy needs and for system security, said the spokesperson. Mr St Baker would not reveal the price of the deal, but said we didnt get close to $700 million. Environmental Justice Australia director of advocacy and research, Nicola Rivers, said it was gob-smackingthe Australian Government would look to Mr St Baker as they seek energy solutions for the future, particularly given his companies rejection of infrastructure to limit pollution from existing power stations. The analysis found if power prices continued to decline, Yallourn, along with the Eraring, Mt Piper, Vales Point B and Gladstone black coal plants would be making a loss by 2025. Vales Point sale HCEC [5] The balloon loop opened in March 1980. It has two steam turbines, with a total generating capacity of 1,320 MW (1,770,000 hp) of electricity. He dismissed the suggestion that Vales Point would close earlier than 2029, particularly given the impending closure of its near neighbour, Liddell Power Station, in 2023. The project was moved to Vales Point Power Station in 2012, after Munmorah closed. [3], In September 2022 Sunset Power owners announced the sale of Vales Point Power Station to a Czech family investment group Sev.En Global Investments.[4]. In an application to the EPA, the power stations owners had requested a further five-year license exemption which allowed for the emission of more than 800mg per cubic metre of nitrogen oxide (NOx) per day. It just staggers me that Australia is so far behind the rest of the world which is switching to renewables while were still talking about projects like this, Ms Wynn said. Key points: Energy Australia will build a 350 megawatt, utility-scale battery in the Latrobe Valley by the end of 2026 The giant coal-fired Yallourn plant has been operating for 47 years Michael Mazengarb is a Sydney-based reporter with RenewEconomy,writing on climate change, clean energy, electric vehicles and politics. AGL, rival Origin Energy and EnergyAustralia have all brought forward the dates for closure of coal-fired power stations since the start of 2021, triggering suggestions that some other coal generators may need to keep running for longer to keep electricity supply secure amid the rise of weather-dependent wind and solar power. Two investors have bought one of NSW's largest coal-fired power stations for the price of a nice suburban house. Newcastle GP andpublic health academic Dr Ben Ewaldsaiddata from existing Hunter and Central Coast power stations provided more evidence of the need to replace old coal-fired power stations with renewable energy. Strict new operating limits for Vales Point Power Station from 1 January It is the second instance of the Morrison government failing to secure investment in new coal-fired generation infrastructure by offering insufficient funding support, following earlier revelations that the government had not provided sufficient grant funding to ensure proponents of a coal-fired power station in Queensland could complete a bankable feasibility study. Coal supplies NSW with an average of 63 percent of its energy requirements, while the National Energy Market average is 59 percent. Its also unknown how the sale will impact the rehabilitation responsibilities for the power station ash dumps, she said. Phone: 02 4352 6111 NSW government sells Vales Point power station for $1m Mr St Baker said he was looking for international investors after Australian banks and major lenders ruled out exposure to coal project funding, in part because of climate change stranded asset risks. There are three methods to extract hydrogen. If the sale goes through, it will continue to pollute long past its slated 2029 closure date. They would be Australias first high-efficiency, low emissions stations, Mr St Baker said. offsite water contamination from the south-east portion of the ash dump identified in the Environment Protection Licence this year. Lake Macquarie - Department of Primary Industries Vales point already has an exemption licence to pollute over and above NSW emission controls. We care about the protection of your data. The REZ will not only attract investment in clean energy, it will also underpin the growth of new low-carbon industries such as green hydrogen, ammonia and metals production which the world is going to need as it decarbonises, Mr Crouch said. The big energy companies are also feeling the pressure from the Morrison government over the proposed closure dates for older coal-fired power stations. Vales Point A (replacement) power station is a proposal by Delta Electricity to build a new 660 MW plant on the site of the demolished Vales Point A plant in New South Wales, Australia. the Liddell plant is owned by AGL which has rejected . The power station's end of technical life is set for 2029. List of coal-fired power stations in Australia - Wikipedia It is one of the chief causes of yellow-brown smog. Im more interested now in what we are doing in electrifying the transport sector, absolutely critical steps forward in the rollout of charging infrastructure, he told The Australian Financial Review. We know that the emissions meet the National Environment Protection Measures for NOx, but weve got the environment groups position. Analysts identified particular economic risk for Vales Point coal power near Newcastle, the same region where NSW Energy Minister Matt Kean will today announce a $70 million fund to grow a green hydrogen industry, which he said would bring jobs and growth to the region. Cockle Creek Power Station - Wikipedia It produces about four per cent of the electricity supplied to consumers in the National Electricity Market. A licence granted last year exempts the operators of the Vales Point plant, recently sold to Sev.en Global Investments, from nitrogen oxide pollution standards. The NSW EPA noted that environment department modelling found that ground-level concentration of NOx in the community meets national health standards. Kean confirmed exemptions granted to Delta during the purchase including a cap of $10m on rehabilitation likely to cost hundreds of millions of dollars would remain in place despite the sale. Energy Australia to close Yallourn power station early and build 350 As outlined in the budget speech and subsequent announcement, the budget allocation has a funding cap of $8.7m, which is below that which Delta requested, leaving a substantially higher quantum of funding by Delta, Delta said in the letter. NSW EPA Chief Tony Chappel said the exemption, coupled with the requirement to cut emissions strikes the right balance between safeguarding environmental health and supporting NSWs need for reliable and affordable energy. We continue to invest in the reliability of Vales Point to its notional closure in 2029. Find them all here. In an open letter to the Newcastle Herald, eleven community environment groups from Lake Macquarie and the Hunter urge the Australian Treasurer, Jim Chalmers to reject the sale of the Vales Point power station for fear of worsening impacts. It is also harmful to the environment. A Morrison government plan to fund upgrades at the Vales Point coal fired power station fell through after the government offered insufficient funding for the upgrades to take place, with owners Delta Electricity warning the plant could close early, documents obtained under FOI show. The Morrison governments low emissions investment road map is technology neutral which meanspublic funding is availableto green and blue hydrogen. Eraring and Vales Point coal-fired power stations in the Hunter could St Baker said that financing the projects would not be sought from Australian banks but instead would rely solely on international lenders. The role of Deltas Vales Point power station in two devastating fish kills that took place in mid-2002 in Wyee Bay are currently under investigation by the NSW EPA. Federal Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor said last month that the industrys potential cannot be ignored and argued that Australia can attract $70 billion of investments over the next decade. NOx emissions can harm peoples health, contribute to respiratory illnesses and can cause asthma in children and the elderly. Origin Energys 2000 MW Liddell plant will close in early 2023. However, a 2015 report from the state government's Coal Innovation Fund says the CCS . Commercial interest has been registered in 24 solar energy projects; 13 onshore and seven offshore wind energy projects; 35 large-scale batteries and eight pumped hydro projects. The other legacies of coal power include environmental and community impact that cannot be ignored as the closure of power stations take place in NSW. Strict new operating limits for Vales Point Power Station from 1 January. AGL Energy has also brought forward the closure of its 2220 MW Loy Yang A plant in Victoria to 2035. Renewable energy boom could force coal power to close early, says new It has been announced that the ageing Vales Point coal-fired power station on the Central Coast, NSW is to be sold by the Australian Delta Energy to the Czech fossil fuel investment company Sev.en, owned by billionaire Pavel Tyka. Environment groups say an ageing coal-fired power station in New South Wales that sold for hundreds of millions of dollars may be operating in breach of the states clean air laws. The decision by the EPA now allows for these conditions and limits to remain in Deltas Environmental Protection Licence, Delta spokesman Steve Gurney said. Future Sooner is a community action group working towards a clean energy future for the Central Coast and Lake Macquarie. Delta Flagged Early Closure of Vales Point Coal Plant When I Vales Point coal-fired power station in NSW could be polluting in With only an approximately seven-year operating life now remaining, and a very weak wholesale electricity forward curve, we believe Yallourns permanent exit may still be even earlier than now planned, Goldman Sachs analyst Baden Moore said. Mr St Bakers announcement came as the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) released a report on Monday showing Chinese finance is increasingly stepping in as the lender of last resort for coal plants, as other banks take active measures to restrict their funding. Eraring power station closure: NSW taxpayers could foot part of the (NB only name and email is required to sign the petition - contact details are optional), You can further help this campaign by sponsoring it. Yalloun Power Station closure to put Newcastle's Vales Point in Delta chief executive Greg Everett said the proposed deal, which has yet to be approved by the Foreign Investment Review Board, was a positive development for Delta and its stakeholders. Please correct the marked field(s) below. The facility is old, dirty, and poorly maintained. Vales Point power station - Global Energy Monitor It is also gearing up to invest more in the business as it seeks approval for a license to allow mining to continue until 2029. For fossil fuel production to be clean carbon capture has to be tacked on to capture the emissions. If Vales Point power station is allowed to operate beyond 2029, we know it will have continued serious consequences for the health of the community. Please try again later. Health at GoPetition. We make strategic investments with long-term commitment.. Mr . As owners for the last eight years, Esprey and St Baker Family Trust have positioned the business to continue essential operations through the energy transition, but recognise that there are opportunities to grow the business and that this can be better accomplished in a portfolio with Sev.ens other base-load capable generation interests, he said. NSW power station given shorter deadline on emissions The Nature Conservation Council of NSW said that, unlike previous exemptions, this one cannot be extended beyond October 2027. Vales Point was commissioned in 1978, and its two turbines generate 1,320 megawatts of electricity, accounting for 11 percent of NSWs energy. The pair, who famously bought the generator for $1 million from the NSW government in 2015 and then revalued it at $722 million two years later, agreed to sell their respective 50 per cent stakes in Delta Electricity, the owner of the plant, to the family company Sev.en Global Investments. He floated the proposal only two weeks after the NSW Environment Protection Authority ordered Vales Point owner Delta Electricity to clean up a huge part of the power stations ash dam after dumped asbestos was found in building waste fill. Eraring is now scheduled for closure in 2025 and will leave Vales Point as the last electricity-generating station standing on Lake Macquarie, however, Vales Point is also scheduled for nominal closure in 2029. Unit no. The Toshiba 660 MW turbo-alternator became the standard in New South Wales, with similar units later being installed at Eraring, Bayswater and Mount Piper. However, the company also flagged that it remained open to shifting the closure date of the Vales Point power station, which was dependent on the prevailing conditions in the energy market. Correspondence obtained through an earlier FOI request shows that Delta Electricity and the department undertook negotiations throughout 2020, ahead of funding being awarded in the federal budget. One uses gas and the other uses coal or gas, and for either to be a clean energy source they require carbon capture and storage to stop the emissions from the fossil fuels entering the atmosphere. In a statement Mr St Baker highlighted the buyers commitment to growing the business. It is acidic, has an unpleasant odour and is highly corrosive. Sev.en has reputation for keeping old and polluting power stations open longer than their use-by date and has indicated the same for Vales Point. In its home market, it runs two coal power generators and two combined heat and power plants. [1], In 2017 it was valued at $732 million, and was estimated to make part-owner energy entrepreneur and former National Party candidate Trevor St Baker a half billionaire. air pollution exemption granted to Vales Point power station by the NSW EPA was successfully challenged by environment and legal groups. Its a two years exemption, then we can apply for another period of time. Alinta Energys Hong Kong-based owner Chow Tai Fook Enterprises is understood to have fielded approaches for the Australian business, which includes the large Loy Yang B coal power generator in Victoria.