ASX:ORG Origin, NSW government consider extending Eraring coal plant’s lifespan

“The NSW government is engaging with Origin on its plans for Eraring Power Station and will not comment while the process is ongoing,” Sharpe said.

The prospect of using taxpayer money to extend the life of Eraring risks putting the NSW government on a collision course with renewable energy advocates and climate campaigners. Coal is a dominant source of greenhouse gas emissions that the world must phase out to help avert catastrophic global warming.

“There is no way Australia can meet its renewable and climate targets if we keep propping up coal-fired power stations, particularly the nation’s biggest,” said Wayne Smith, acting chief executive of the Smart Energy Council, which represents solar and battery installers.

However, with at least half of the remaining 14 coal generators on the eastern seaboard due to close within the next decade, governments are becoming increasingly nervous that not enough new renewable energy generators, storage projects and transmission lines are being built to keep power supplies and prices stable.

The Victorian government has already intervened to ensure two of its biggest coal generators do not shut prematurely, while NSW is now considering doing the same for Eraring.

“Australia’s great energy transition – from fossil fuels to renewables – is not going well,” said Tony Wood, energy director at research organisation the Grattan Institute.

In a report published this week, Wood said NSW would need to prop up Eraring until the grid was equipped to handle its withdrawal, and may also have to cut a deal to support the Bayswater coal generator as well.

Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the Albanese government “believes Eraring should close not a day earlier or a day later than it is needed”.

Origin, whose business spans fossil fuel and renewable energy sources, delivered a quarterly trading update on Tuesday, showing revenue from its Queensland liquefied natural gas joint venture Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) had fallen 16 per cent from the same time a year ago as global gas prices continued sliding from record highs caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

However, APLNG’s gas sales of $2.5 billion for the first three months of the year were 7 per cent higher than the prior quarter, Origin said.

In its domestic power generation and retailing business, Origin said it was making “significant progress” in its strategy to grow renewables and storage in its portfolio. This month, Origin struck signed a deal to acquire Yanco Delta, one of the largest and most advanced wind farm and storage projects in NSW.

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