Squadron gets approval for gas generator and electrolyser to back up Forrest’s wind and solar plans

Mining billionaire and green energy evangelist Andrew Forrest’s Squadron Energy has won planning approval from the the NSW Independent Planning Commission for a new fossil gas generator it says is essential to back up its big wind and solar project plans.

The IPC granted approval for the 64 MW Dubbo Firming Power Station, a dual facility described as “hydrogen ready”, and whose plans also include potential for a 20 MW green hydrogen electrolyser.

Squadron Energy is owned by Forrest’s private investment group Tattarang and proposes to build the firming gas generator in the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone, Australia’s first declared renewable energy zone, where it also has a number of wind and solar projects.

These include the 404 MW Uungula wind project currently under construction, and the proposed 700MW Spicers Creek Wind Farm. The company also proposes battery projects at Uungula and Spicers Creek, and at other assets including Sapphire, Gol Gol and Koorakee.

The Dubbo plant will be built in a heavy industrial area of the town, next to an abattoir, and will likely operate around for around 1,000 hours per year – so it will have a low capacity factor of just over 12 per cent.

The IPC says it will provide security to the NSW grid “when the supply of electricity from other sources (particularly intermittent sources such as wind and solar power) is insufficient to meet demand.”

However, it has imposed conditions on the use of the proposed 20 MW hydrogen electrolysis plant, including that hydrogen must be produced using renewable electricity only.  

This meets Squadron Energy’s original plan to run the electrolysis plant during times of surplus renewable energy from its wind farms or when demand is low across the electricity network. The turbines are capable of running on 25 per cent hydrogen blend.

The IPC normally considers projects referred to it because of a large number of submissions opposing them, but in this case the referral was made because of a “reportable political donation.”

It said, however, that it received nine submissions. Many of them raised concerns about the intermittency of wind and solar and the shift to renewables, and one was worried about the impact on the school bus route.

On emissions, the IPC recognised concerns about the emissions from fossil gas generators, but noticed Squadron’s intention to reduce emissions through the use of green hydrogen.

However, it noted that Squadron says the use of green hydrogen is “not yet economically cost effective”. Construction of the project is expected to support up to 150 jobs and 6 ongoing operational jobs. Original plans for the project expected construction to be completed by the end of 2025.