Collinsville Power station feasibility study

[sprintcyclist]

https://arena.gov.au/knowledge-bank/col ... -report-1/

In my books to do a feasibility study is important.


I heard on the radio a combined system of solar, wind and pumped solar is more economic than a new coal powered station
pumped solar system are very good.
This area is well suited to such a system and could send DC power to Brisbane and Sydney

From what I heard and my experiences, a combination system would be preferred

[sprintcyclist]

Appears solar molten salt is not viable

............ Crescent Dunes has been shut down since April, and the Energy Department took control of it in August, according to a lawsuit SolarReserve filed in Delaware Chancery Court seeking to reverse the takeover. The plant’s technology was designed to generate enough power night and day to supply a city the size of nearby Sparks, Nev. (population 100,000), but it never came close. Its power cost NV about $135 per ­megawatt-hour, compared with less than $30 per MWh today at a new Nevada photovoltaic solar farm, according to BloombergNEF, which researches fossil fuel alternatives. .............

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... ent-online

[sprintcyclist]

ok, we have another feasibility study happening

A proposed $5 billion renewable energy hub in northern Queensland combining pumped hydro storage with huge solar and wind generation is being touted as the "battery of the north" and should be competitive with coal-fired power when it starts up in 2027, according to its backer.

Luke McDonald, chief executive of project developer Renewable Energy Partners, said that while the modelling was still being worked on, the group is confident of being competitive for commercial and industrial energy users in central and north Queensland.
The pumped hydro project would also include solar and wind power.

"We understand the price point we need to meet," he said.

Mr McDonald was speaking after the Urannah Renewable Energy Hub secured up to $2 million for a pre-feasibility study from the federal government, announced at the same time as a controversial $4 million grant for a potential new coal power plant in the same region near Collinsville.

He said he didn't necessarily see the renewable energy hub as in direct competition with that potential high-efficiency, low-emissions coal power generator.
"That's something the market would have to determine which project it prefers," Mr McDonald told The Australian Financial Review, saying it was possible both could proceed.
"We don't see [the coal power project] necessarily impacting on what we are doing."

The grant would examine early feasibility work on the Urannah project, which would initially involve 1 gigawatt of pumped hydropower generation, with seven hours of storage capacity, as well as a further 500MW with a longer storage capacity. The solar and wind projects could be developed earlier, given their shorter approvals process.

The hub would be developed in conjunction with a proposed water scheme between Collinsville, Proserpine and Mackay that would provide water for coking coal producers.

Privately-owned Renewable Energy Partners is not one of the 15 top developers of solar, wind and storage projects in Queensland, noted Rystad Energy's Gero Farruggio. However, according to the company's website, it is also developing the 250 megawatt Western Downs solar farm in Queensland and the 500MW Wambo wind farm. Mr McDonald said the Urannah project had been under study for 12-18 months, but that the water project had been under study much longer, for "20 or 30 years".

The firm has held talks with potential partners to take the project forward, with Mr McDonald saying he was confident to have an initial partner on board by June 30. That would come as part of a $25 million raising to take it through feasibility work and to financial close, targeted for 2023 or 2024. He said hydrogen production could also be added at a later stage, using a 200MW electrolyser.

While Genex's proposed Kidston pumped hydro project in Queensland is more advanced, Mr McDonald noted that the Australian Energy Market Operator has identified the need for one or more large-scale pumped hydro projects in Queensland by 2035 to help with security of supply amid the major growth in generation from intermittent renewable energy.

The project would also help reduce transmission losses due to congested supply during peak generation periods and allow major coal fired power stations to operate more efficiently and under less stress because they would not be required to vary their output so often, the group said.

It would also help with voltage and frequency regulation, and system strength, for the power grid, especially as existing coal-fired power stations retire from the market and close, starting with the Callide generator in 2028.

GHD, EY and Ashurst are advising on the project.

The federal government also advised it would provide up to $1.5 million for the electrification of the three LNG export ventures on Curtis Island in Gladstone. That project could free up to 12 petajoules of natural gas for use in the stretched domestic market.

https://www.afr.com/companies/energy/5b ... 210-p53z8f