Genex Power’s Kidston Renewable Energy Hub in Far North Queensland has been fast-tracked with its flagship $330 million Kidston Pumped Hydro Storage project (K2H) being declared a ‘coordinated project’ late last week.
On Friday 28 September, Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning Cameron Dick said the K2H project, which is located at the decommissioned Kidston Gold Mine within Etheridge Shire, proposes an innovative use of two existing adjacent water-filled mine pits (Wises and Eldridge) to generate hydroelectricity. Genex was granted development approval by the Etheridge Shire Council in the week prior, and the latest declaration is considered the ‘final push’ to get this project up and running.
“If approved, the project could employ 370 people during the two-year construction and have a minimum lifespan of 50 years,” the Minister announced.
“When complete, Stages 1 and 2 of the Kidston Renewable Energy Hub will provide enough energy to power around 160,000 Australian homes – enough power for a city bigger than Cairns,” the Minister revealed.
The first stage of the proposed project has already been forecasted to produce enough power to supply more than 26,000 Australian homes, offsetting 120,000 tonnes of CO2 per year which is equivalent to removing 33,000 cars off Australian roads.
“This renewable energy project has the ability to revitalise the local economy and I commend Genex on making sure locals benefit from the project,” he said.
Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy, Dr Anthony Lynham said the project could act as a large-scale battery storage, allowing solar energy from the adjoining solar project to be stored and harnessed as peak-load power on demand.
“The project complements the Palaszczuk Government’s target of generating 50 per cent of Queensland’s electricity needs from renewable energy by 2030 and is part of state’s $5 billion pipeline of financially committed or underway renewable energy projects,” he commented.
“The addition of hydroelectric generation in Far North Queensland will add stability to the network in the region, reducing the necessity for importing excess electricity from neighbouring areas, providing a benefit to the entire network,” Dr Lynham said.
The Kidston Renewable Energy Hub comprises:
- Stage 1 solar power project (50 MW) which has been constructed.
- Stage 2 proposed new solar project (270 MW) to integrate with the K2H project (250 MW) – currently undergoing assessment.
- Stage 3 wind farm project (150 MW) which is in the feasibility stage.
Energy generated by Stage 2 (combined solar and hydro) will be through a new transmission line connecting the Kidston site to Mount Fox, near Ingham.
Mr Dick said that the K2H project is ‘very innovative’ but also ‘in a unique situation which a renewable energy project is proposed over an abandoned mine’.
“This means that certain aspects of the project can only be regulated and approved by the Coordinator-General, which is another advantage of the flexibility of the coordinated project approach,” the Minister said. If approved, construction is due to commence in 2019 and expected to be completed by 2021.
More information on the K2H project can be found the Department of State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning’s K2H project page.
