{"id":18811,"date":"2022-09-08T11:57:55","date_gmt":"2022-09-08T01:57:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/?p=18811"},"modified":"2023-11-28T11:03:51","modified_gmt":"2023-11-28T01:03:51","slug":"how-do-we-shut-down-australias-largest-power-plant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/how-do-we-shut-down-australias-largest-power-plant\/","title":{"rendered":"How do we shut down Australia\u2019s largest power&nbsp;plant?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"is-style-lead\">Australia is moving away from traditional energy sources that have kept our lights on for generations, to a cleaner energy system &#8211; powered predominantly by renewables. But what does it mean for the electricity grid? Find out in season two of our podcast, So Watt?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the Pok\u00e9mon Gameboy game, players must pick a starting Pok\u00e9mon based on elements of water, fire, and grass.&nbsp;Squirtle, Charmander, and Bulbasaur all have different strengths and weaknesses, and what we learn on the journey is that we need a well-rounded team of Pok\u00e9mon who support each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, what does that have to do with energy, and the transition to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/working-towards-a-cleaner-energy-future\/\">cleaner energy system<\/a>? It\u2019s a stretch, but it\u2019s an analogy about how the electricity grid needs different power sources working together in order to keep the lights on for everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And that\u2019s what we\u2019re exploring in season two of So Watt? \u2013 a podcast about energy hosted by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/domfay\/?hl=en\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Dom Fay<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/zachmander\/?hl=en\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Zach Mander<\/a> from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/zachanddom\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Collective Noun<\/a>. It\u2019s all about how we transition to a cleaner energy system, powered predominantly by renewables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Have a listen below, or read on for a recap of episode one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/episode\/16b2PM8l4OwafIocn33oot?utm_source=generator&amp;theme=0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"152\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/iframe><caption><center>Tune in to episode one now<\/center><\/caption>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:11px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What role does coal power play today?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Coal-fired power plants are called baseload generators, which means they were designed to run 24\/7 and maintain constant power. Today, coal plants still generate around 60% of total power needs in the national electricity market &#8211; so how do we move away from it without sending everyone into darkness?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Australia\u2019s biggest coal-fired power plant, Eraring in NSW, is owned and operated by Origin. It can generate 2,922 Megawatts of power at peak output \u2013 that\u2019s about 25% of NSW\u2019s power output at the moment. To put things in perspective, the average <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/solar\/\">home solar installation<\/a> is 9.54 Kilowatts, so we\u2019d need more than 300,000 homes generating that much <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/solar\/\">solar power<\/a>, day and night, to match Eraring\u2019s energy output. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) estimates that by 2030, up to 60% of Australia\u2019s coal-fired power could be retired, and 83% of our total power needs will come from renewables. So, here\u2019s the challenge: we need to build significantly more renewables to replace coal plants exiting the grid, and we need a lot more transmission to carry that power from the renewable plants to demand centres, like our large cities. We also need to solve the problem of back-up (or firming) power, because renewable energy is variable and can\u2019t meet our power needs 24\/7. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The big shutdown<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Shutting down a huge facility like Eraring is a big undertaking and requires years of planning to ensure it\u2019s managed smoothly.&nbsp;Earlier this year, Origin announced <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/about\/investors-media\/origin-proposes-to-accelerate-exit-from-coal-fired-generation\/\">plans to shut down Eraring<\/a> as early as August 2025. That leaves three years to ensure there is enough supply in the market to compensate for the potential <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/about\/investors-media\/origin-proposes-to-accelerate-exit-from-coal-fired-generation\/\">exit of Eraring<\/a>, and plan how to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/how-large-scale-batteries-support-renewables\/\">repurpose the site<\/a>. The terrain isn\u2019t suitable for solar or wind farms &#8211; so we\u2019re looking to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/about\/investors-media\/eraring-battery-receives-nsw-government-approval\/\">build a large-scale battery<\/a>. In fact, at 700 Megawatts, when built it will be one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/how-large-scale-batteries-support-renewables\/\">biggest batteries<\/a> in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/about\/investors-media\/origin-proposes-to-accelerate-exit-from-coal-fired-generation\/\">Eraring ret<\/a>iring, how does the market continue to balance supply and demand 24\/7 in real-time? How does the system completely replace coal-fired power?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019re going to need more large-scale solar and wind farms. However, these renewables can\u2019t completely replace traditional forms of energy as their output is variable \u2013 they can\u2019t generate power when the wind isn\u2019t blowing and the sun isn\u2019t shining. So, we need other \u2018firm\u2019 energy sources that can provide capacity and ensure reliable supply. And that means we\u2019re going to need a lot more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/how-large-scale-batteries-support-renewables\/\">battery storage<\/a> in Australia to store excess renewable power for use at a later time. This means lots of lithium-ion batteries \u2013 like the one we\u2019re looking to install at Eraring, and more pumped storage hydro, which also acts like a giant battery. Gas-fired peaking plants will also continue to play an important role, and while they may not run very often, they\u2019ll be crucial to reliable supply when back-up is needed over longer periods of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s all about getting the right mix of energy sources in place so we can maintain reliable power supply in the grid for Aussie homes and businesses.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The shutdown of Eraring is one of the key steps Origin is taking as we make progress towards our ambition to reach net zero emissions by 2050. We\u2019re also committed to helping our customers to reduce their carbon footprint by providing the right products and services, because we can all play a role in the transition to cleaner energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:26px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button aligncenter\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/about\/investors-media\/media-centre\/podcasts\/\">Listen to episode one now<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Hosts, Zach and Dom from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/zachanddom\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Collective Noun<\/a> admit they know nothing about energy &#8211; but not for long! Origin\u2019s So Watt? podcast questions everything you thought you knew about energy, and explores the solutions that exist today. In season two of So Watt? go on a journey with Zach and Dom to find out more about the transition to renewables, what changes are already happening and what\u2019s coming up. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:34px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Australia&#8217;s moving away from traditional energy sources to a cleaner energy system powered by renewables. But what does it mean for the electricity&nbsp;grid?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":18812,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[105,108],"tags":[90,45,130],"oe_author":[],"class_list":["post-18811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-at-home","category-future-energy","tag-eraring","tag-renewable-energy","tag-so-watt"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18811"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18811\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18811"},{"taxonomy":"oe_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oe_author?post=18811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}