Eraring coal power station report to be made public

Duncan Murray | September 5, 2023

The findings of a review into NSW’s preparedness for the renewable energy transition and the future of Australia’s biggest black coal-fired power station are about to be revealed.

There has been rising speculation the review report will recommend extending the life of the Eraring Power Station beyond 2025.

On Tuesday, the state government will release the report ahead of schedule alongside report author Cameron O’Reilly.

In commissioning the independent report in May, the Labor government flagged that several factors including competition for investment and skills shortages had made delivering the energy transition more difficult.

On Monday, the government dismissed claims by Liberal MP and former state treasurer Matt Kean that extending the life of Eraring would cost taxpayers $3 billion in subsidies.

Energy Minister Penny Sharpe said the government “had not looked at” the cost of keeping Eraring open for longer and blamed privatisations by the previous coalition government for delaying the energy transition.

“The selling off of our electricity system has made every aspect of this transition harder,” she said.

The Eraring Power Station, near Newcastle, has a generating capacity of 2922 megawatts and supplies about 25 per cent of the state’s electricity needs.

It was acquired from the NSW government by Origin Energy in 2013.

Last year, Origin said it planned to retire the facility in August 2025 and install a large-scale battery.