Australia Sees Renewables Boom Forcing Earlier Coal Plant Closures
- Ageing coal plants have helped make grid very volatile
- Nation is seen as a global test case for shift to renewables
A coal plant in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. The last coal plant will retire in 2037-2038 under the most likely scenario, the Australian Energy Market Operator said.
Photographer: David Gray/BloombergAustralia’s biggest grid has slashed its forecast for the end of coal-fired power by five years, as the nation’s households drive a world-leading transition away from the dirtiest fossil fuel.
The last coal plant will retire in 2037-2038 under the most likely scenario, the Australian Energy Market Operator said in its draft biennial Integrated System Plan for the National Electricity Market, compared with 2042-2043 under the plan published in June 2022. Replacing the generators and meeting increasing demand means capacity will need to almost triple by 2050 with the capital cost of all required generation, storage, firming and transmission infrastructure seen at A$121 billion ($81 billion) a year, it said.