The Western Australian government is progressing with an important initiative to solve long-running power reliability issues in the Eastern Goldfields, announcing a new backup electricity agreement for the Kalgoorlie-Boulder region.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between state-owned network operator Western Power and mining company Northern Star Resources creates a framework to safeguard local electricity supply during both planned and unplanned network outages.
Under the new framework, Northern Star’s Parkeston Power Station will provide up to 70 megawatts (MW) of backup electricity to the local network when the primary transmission line is compromised.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder and the surrounding Goldfields currently rely on a single 220-kilovolt (kV) transmission line stretching over 650 kilometres from the main grid. This long line remains highly vulnerable to interruption from extreme regional weather and bushfires.
The agreement is designed to scale up over time. Once Northern Star completes its new onsite renewable energy and power facility, the backup arrangement could expand to cover all power grid outages.
Once finalised into a binding contract, the agreement will fully protect essential services, residential suburbs, and small businesses from extended blackouts.
Energy and Decarbonisation Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson noted that local power supply has been a major concern for Goldfields families and industries following several severe outages in recent years.
“The MoU with Northern Star is a critical step towards strengthening back-up power supply generation for one of the State’s vital economic hubs,” Sanderson said.
“Western Power is securing a sensible and long-term arrangement to support families, businesses and the community.”
The grid stability initiative lands alongside a separate AU$150 million State Budget investment to construct a locally manufactured vanadium flow battery in Kalgoorlie-Boulder. When completed, the battery asset will offer up to 10 hours of continuous backup power to the regional grid.
Kalgoorlie MLA Ali Kent welcomed the dual energy announcement, noting the region has suffered from decades of infrastructure planning gaps.
“I’m thrilled about this significant announcement and the win-win for residents, small business and industry stakeholders,” Kent said.
