NSW waves through critical transmission works and Waratah Super Battery

Critical EnergyConnect super highway transmission upgrades linking New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria, and connecting Snowy 2.0 to the grid, have been green-lighted by the NSW government, with officials predicting both projects will drive down power prices and boost the economy.

Final environmental approval of EnergyConnect – Australia’s biggest energy transmission project – and 9km of new Snowy 2.0 transmission lines was announced on Wednesday. EnergyConnect will see new transmission lines installed from Wagga Wagga to Buronga near the Victorian border.

At the same time, the proposed 700MW/1,400MWh Waratah Super Battery project was declared “Critical State Infrastructure”, with the Perrottet government recognising the immediate priority of the project.

The Waratah Super Battery is slated to be the largest standby network battery in the Southern Hemisphere,  effectively acting as a giant shock absorber so that transmission capacity currently stored in reserve can be freed up to transfer energy to consumers.

“These three projects are vital for the state’s energy future, with EnergyConnect helping build the capacity of the grid and get renewable energy from south-west NSW and South Australia flowing around the state,” said NSW energy minister Matt Kean.

“By having these strong connections and batteries in place, more energy will be available to everyone and further improve the grid’s reliability, meaning prices will come down and power bills across the state will be lower,” he said.

EnergyConnect is widely seen as key infrastructure required to improve grid reliability, expand the trade of electricity between states, and support the development of new wind and solar projects.

Transgrid, the NSW-based transmission company, initiated works on the $1.8 billion portion of the 900km link from Robertstown in South Australia and Wagga Wagga in New South Wales in June. Work on the South Australian portion of the project started in February.

“We are pleased the NSW minister for planning has cleared the path for us to progress the second half of our $1.8 billion interconnector project,” Transgrid CEO Brett Redman said

“The government has completed a thorough review of the Environmental Impact Statement for the roughly 540km eastern section of the project, just as Transgrid accelerates construction efforts in the west of NSW.”

Works on the western section of Australia’s largest electricity transmission project are progressing well, with the construction of a 30-hectare camp to house hundreds of workers at Buronga, before crews prepare to assemble and erect the first of 1,500 steel towers, according to Redman.

“The interconnector will enable sharing of energy between NSW and South Australia and Victoria for the first time, enable the integration of renewable generation and help the federal government achieve its climate change targets,” he said.

Redman says EnergyConnect is estimated to save NSW electricity customers $180 million a year, once complete, and contribute $4 billion in net benefits.

The project is now proceeding for assessment by the Commonwealth Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment.