Hazelwood power station

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Hazelwood power station
Hazelwood power station
Hazelwood power station
location
Hazelwood Power Plant, Victoria
Hazelwood power station
Coordinates 38 ° 16 '22 "  S , 146 ° 23' 30"  O Coordinates: 38 ° 16 '22 "  S , 146 ° 23' 30"  O
country Australia
Data
Type Thermal power plant
Primary energy Brown coal
fuel coal
power 1675 MW
owner ENGIE
operator ENGIE
Project start 1959
Start of operations eight blocks from 1964 to 1971
Shutdown 2017
f2

The Hazelwood Power Station was one of lignite -powered coal power plant in the Australian state of Victoria . It is located near the city of Morwell , served to cover the base load and produced approximately 1/4 of the electrical energy required in the state of Victoria. The power plant consisted of eight blocks with a total electrical output of 1675  MW . The waste heat was not used for district heating . Instead of cooling towers more scale in the vicinity of the power plant were flooded gravel pits used for cooling.

The power plant ceased operations at the end of March 2017.

history

Plant at night

The construction of the power plant began in 1959, in 1964 the first of six blocks with a capacity of 200 MW each went into operation, in 1971 the last of the originally planned six blocks was completed. During the construction period at the end of the 1960s, two further power plant blocks were approved and construction began, which were completed in 1970 and 1971 due to high energy demand. The power plant has therefore had eight blocks since 1971. Under the Prime Minister of Victoria Jeff Kennett , the power plant was privatized in 1993.

The lignite for the operation was extracted from nearby open-pit mining areas in the Latrobe Valley . The annual output of the entire power plant complex was estimated at 17 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and was accompanied by controversy because of the emissions. It was considered the "dirtiest coal-fired power plant" in the country, generating more than 5% of Australia's greenhouse emissions. In 2005, the environmental foundation WWF even declared the facility to be the dirtiest in all countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

In 2014, bush fires spread to the power plant's coal mine and burned for 45 days. The operating company ENGIE was sentenced to pay the equivalent of 960,000 euros because it was not prepared for such fires.

Shutdown

The power plant fed energy into the grid for the last time at the end of March 2017. According to the operator, an investment of several hundred million AUD would have been necessary to continue operating the power plant economically. Given the market conditions, this investment could not be justified. According to government figures, almost two thirds of the electricity in 2015 came from coal-fired power plants. At that time, Australia had the highest per capita emissions in the world.

For consumers in the state of South Australia , the shutdown led to rising electricity prices. In addition, the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) warned of the negative consequences for the security and stability of the power grid in South Australia.

Two thirds of the 750 employees lost their jobs in 2017. The remaining 250 employees are to accompany the dismantling of the plant. ENGIE wants to renaturate the lignite mining area.

In May 2020 the eight chimneys, each 137 meters high, were blown up. The demolition work should be completed in 2022.

See also

Web links

Commons : Hazelwood Power Station  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b Hazelwood Power Station , data, accessed June 1, 2011
  2. a b c Australia's “dirtiest” lignite power plant demolished , nau.ch, May 25, 2020.
  3. a b One of the dirtiest coal-fired power plants in the world is shut down , Greenpeace magazine, November 4, 2016 (accessed May 25, 2020).
  4. a b Nick Harmsen: SA power: Hazelwood power station shutdown to lead to price hikes, less reliability but more security , Australian Broadcasting Corporation , March 29, 2017 (accessed April 21, 2017).
  5. Hazelwood to close in March 2017 . Press release of November 3, 2016, accessed April 21, 2017
  6. Wholesale electricity prices up in Victoria since Hazelwood power station closure , Australian Broadcasting Corporation , March 29, 2018.
  7. Hazelwood power station in Australia to close at the end of March 2017 engie.com, November 3, 2016 (accessed May 25, 2020).
  8. ^ Mine Rehabilitation , February 2017 (accessed April 21, 2017).