New Energy
Australia Clears $3 Billion Plan to Link Troubled Hydro Project
- HumeLink project will allow connection of Snowy 2.0 to grid
- Australia’s energy transition is becoming an election issue
This article is for subscribers only.
Australia approved a A$4.8 billion ($3 billion) transmission project to connect more renewable energy to its main grid, including from a massive hydropower project that has been plagued by delays and cost overruns.
The clearance comes as the nation undergoes one of the world’s fastest transitions away from a grid heavily reliant on coal-fired power plants to solar and wind generation, which require batteries or hydropower to back them up when the sun doesn’t shine or gusts don’t blow. The issue of how to ensure stable supplies has become increasingly political ahead of elections due by May, with the main opposition party last week laying out a A$331 billion plan to create a nuclear power industry.