Origin to build gas power station in Victoria

Origin Energy is building a $1.2 billion natural gas fired power station in Western Victoria, near the township of Mortlake, with a capacity of up to 1,000 MW.

The plant will be supplied with natural gas via a 78 km dedicated underground transmission pipeline from the new gas processing plant being built near Port Campbell, as part of the offshore Otway Gas Project.

State Government Minister for Energy and Resources Peter Batchelor said “In the first stage of the Origin Energy proposal 550 MW will be developed and this new power station will boost Victoria’s electricity capacity by up to five per cent.”

The natural gas fired power station will also generate cleaner energy – emitting up to 70 per cent less greenhouse gas than brown coal. This project has the potential to add hundreds of millions of dollars to the economy and 200 jobs during the construction phase, particularly in Victoria’s south west region.”

Collie frees WA gas

More gas is expected to be sold through Western Australia’s online gas trading scheme, following the re-starting of the 330 MW Collie Power Station.

Western Australian Energy Minister Francis Logan said he is expecting some gas to be released to the market almost immediately through the Gas Bulletin Board at current market levels, and further quantities of gas at distillate prices.

Gas supplies in Western Australia have been reduced by 30 per cent since the incident at Varanus Island. The Gas Bulletin Board allows gas users and producers to make trades, facilitated by the Independent Market Operator.

The Minister said that the Bulletin Board was proving a useful tool in bringing sellers and potential buyers of gas together.

Rolls Royce powers Australia

At the Power-Gen Europe show in Milan customers from eight countries, including Australia, purchased the Rolls-Royce Trent 60 engine.

Babcock and Brown Power ordered a second Trent 60 dual-fuel unit to provide power for a remote iron ore mine operated by BHP Billiton, the world’s largest mining company, at the Newman mining township in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Charlie Athanasia, Vice-President of Power Generation for the Rolls-Royce energy business, said “These worldwide customers have expressed their interest in the Trent because of its high simple cycle efficiency and power density. This translates into lower operating and installation costs thus enhancing to total life cycle value to our customers.”