Western Australian Premier Alan Carpenter opened the Broome Power Station in April 2008, marking the completion of the $320million West Kimberley Power Project (WKPP). With the project complete, the Western Australian Kimberley towns of Broome, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing and Halls Creek are now serviced by new gas-fired power stations. A new diesel station was also built at the smaller community of Looma.

Powering the West Kimberley

In August 2005 Horizon Power signed a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement under which Energy Developments would build, own and operate the new stations, and supply electricity to Horizon Power to sell and distribute to its customers in the West Kimberley region.

The WKPP replaced five diesel-fired power stations and infrastructure with more efficient and environmentally-friendly power stations. The old power stations were up to 30 years old and in most circumstances did not meet legislated noise emission standards. The new gas-fired power stations are expected to meet the needs of local communities in the resource-rich but isolated West Kimberley region of the state for the next 20 years.

With an initial generating capacity of 61 megawatts (MW) – potentially growing to 92 MW over 20 years – the project is now supplying electricity to more than 27,000 people in the region. Natural gas is sourced from the Dampier to Bunbury Natural Gas Pipeline, liquefied at a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant at Karratha and then transported by truck to the towns.

Energy Developments believes that customers can switch to LNG as a viable, alternative long term energy source for power generation and transport, introducing a new and competitive fuel source to the region.

Benefiting the community

Some of the benefits of the WKPP for the region include:

- A 25 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from the use of LNG - Ultra-low noise generators to minimise the impact on residents - Direct employment of at least 30people as well as the creation of other service and support industry positions in the region - The purchase of local services and materials during construction.

Major challenges

The WKPP has overcome a number of challenges. In February 2007 Energy Developments Managing Director Chris Laurie said the period of extremely high demand had made it difficult to secure labour, materials and services. “We regret the delays, and we are pulling out all stops to get things finished at the earliest possible time, but we have unfortunately been affected by the extraordinary boom in the Pilbara,” he said.

Under the terms of the agreement with Horizon Power, a reliable operations (RO) test was required for each power station. Under the RO test each new power station had to supply electricity within certain quality and reliability limits for 60 consecutive days. In February and April of this year Broome’s RO test was interrupted when the generators were unable to maintain the electrical load required due to a delivery of out-of-specification gas. However supply was quickly restored in accordance with standard procedure, meeting the electrical power requirements of the town.

Commenting on the interruptions at Broome, Energy Developments Managing Director Greg Pritchard said that the supply interruptions and resulting impacts on the half year earnings were very disappointing given that the power station and associated infrastructure were otherwise operating well.

A more recent challenge for the project was the pipeline rupture on Varanus Island. In response to the rupture, Energy Developments secured, on a short term basis, an alternative gas supply and pipeline transport to enable LNG production to resume at the LNG plant at Karratha for supply to the WKPP.

WKPP power stations

The WKPP comprises of five power stations - with four fuelled by LNG - Broome, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing and Halls Creek, the LNG plant at Karratha and associated road transport infrastructure.

Broome

Construction on the 34 MW Broome power station began on 15 April 2006 when Energy Minister Francis Logan broke ground on the site. Minister Logan said the start of construction represented a significant day for the West Kimberley region and the commencement of a $700 million investment. “That is an investment of about $180 million in capital works and associated costs and over $400 million in power purchases over the next 20 years – an enormous commitment to the development of the West Kimberley region,” he said.

Derby

The new 14 MW Derby power station consists of a series of generators housed in modular units. It is located on the existing power station site but is smaller and emits much less noise than the former station. The high voltage electricity distribution network was increased from 6,600 to 11,000 volts, which increased the capacity and power supply to the town. Derby passed its RO test in April 2008.

Fitzroy Crossing

The Fitzroy Crossing 6 MW power station passed its RO test in May 2008 and is located at a new site at the western entry to the town. As with Derby, the high voltage electricity distribution network was increased from 6,600 to 11,000 volts to increase the capacity and power supply to the town.

Halls Creek

Halls Creek’s new 5 MW power station passed its 60-day test in April 2008. It was constructed at a new site at the western side of the town, also comprising of modular units.

Looma

Looma’s new 1 MW diesel power station passed its 60-day RO test in June 2007. Looma remained diesel primarily due to the relatively high LNG infrastructure costs could not be justified for the small power station.

Karratha LNG plant

The LNG Plant on the Maitland Industrial Estate is located 20 km west of Karratha. The plant is supplied by North West Shelf gas, delivered via a 3.2 km pipeline spur from the Dampier Bunbury Natural Gas Pipeline. LNG from the Karratha plant is carried by triple road trains, which rely on LNG for up to 80percent of their own fuel requirements, some 1,500 km to the power stations where the gas is stored in tanks with a capacity of more than five million litres.

In June 2006 Energy Developments brought forward the expansion of the Karratha LNG plant, which was originally planned for 2016, from 160tonnesperday (t/d) to 200 t/d. This increased capacity will allow Energy Developments to produce more LNG than is required for the WKPP in the early life of the project and take advantage of the significant increase in demand for energy in the region. Although commissioning of the plant was held up by a shortage of workers and materials, the plant flowed gas from October 2007.

Future developments for the WKPP

The WKPP is a major development in more efficient and lower emissions power generation in the West Kimberley.

Mr Pritchard said that completion of the final RO test was a significant milestone for the project. “We are pleased that Broome has now passed this milestone in what has been a challenging project. We now look forward to working with Horizon Power over the 20 year operating phase,” he said.

A spokesperson for Horizon Power said that for some employees, switching off the old stations for the last time was a sad moment. “Many had committed their working lives to keeping the old stations running, but at the same time it’s exciting to have the new stations now supporting a new generation of customers.”