Industry overview
Below is an overview of the primary Victorian brown coal mining and power generation sites and companies.
| Station | Owner/s | Overview | Power station and mine specifications |
| Loy Yang Power | Great Energy Alliance Corporation (AGL, Tokyo Electric Power Company, Transfield Services Infrastructure Fund and three superannuation funds) |
Loy Yang Power is Victoria's single largest energy producing plant, supplying around one third of the state‟s energy needs. The Loy Yang mine is the Southern Hemisphere's largest coal producing mine with an annual output of approximately 30 million tonnes of coal and 3-4 million cubic metres of overburden (soil that overlays the coal seams). Loy Yang Power generates electricity using vast reserves of brown coal to power four 500+ megawatt turbo generators. The four generators were brought into service between 1984 and1988 and have been continually upgraded to allow for Loy Yang Power's generation capacity to expand to more than 2,200 megawatts. Loy Yang Power directly employs more than 550 people, two thirds of which are shift workers to cover the 24 hour operation of the power station and mine. |
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| Loy Yang B | International Power |
Loy Yang B supplies around 17 per cent of the state's energy needs, using coal from the nearby Loy Yang Mine Loy Yang B Power Station is located in Victoria's Latrobe Valley, 160kms east of Melbourne. It is Victoria‟s newest and most efficient baseload power station generating over 1000 MW – or around 17 per cent - of Victoria's energy needs. The first of the power station's two 500 MW unit came on line in 1993 with the second 500 MW unit commencing commercial operations in 1996. It is supplied with brown coal from the adjacent Loy Yang open cut mine. Loy Yang B is jointly owned by a consortium of International Power plc (70 per cent) and Mitsui & Co Ltd (3o per cent). The partnership trades as International Power Mitsui Loy Yang B (IPM LYB). It employs around 150 full time staff and another 40 contractors and generates several hundred more jobs in the service and supply industry through the Gippsland and Latrobe Valley region. |
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| Hazelwood | International Power |
Hazelwood produces around 25 per cent of the power required in Victoria, using brown coal from its mine, which is located adjacent to the station site. Hazelwood power station and Hazelwood mine are located in Victoria's Latrobe Valley, 150 km east of Melbourne. The nominal 1600 MW brown-coal fired power station is supplied with up to 18 million tonnes of coal annually from its adjacent brown coal Completed in 1971, the business directly employs 540 staff and averages 300 alliance contractors with hundreds more employed during major outages.
Hazelwood supplies up to 25% of Victoria's energy requirements and 5.4 % of Australia's energy demand. It is home to one of the largest carbon capture and storage demonstration plants in the world. Majority owned (92%) and operated by International Power plc (IPR), Hazelwood was purchased in 1996 for $2.35 billion when IPR entered the Australian energy industry market. Together with Loy Yang B, the two stations represent produce around 40 per cent of Victoria's energy needs. |
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| Yallourn | TRUenergy |
Yallourn has the longest history of the Victorian brown coal mines and power stations. The decision to build a power station on the site was confirmed in 1919, and construction began in 1921. Today, Yallourn supplies 22 per cent of Victoria's energy. TRUenergy is a leading vertically integrated and diversified Australian energy group, with total assets of approximately A$5.4 billion. TRUenergy's business activities comprise power generation, gas processing and storage, and electricity and gas retailing. TRUenergy is Australia's fourth largest energy retailer with approximately 1.3 million retail accounts. TRUenergy operates power stations in Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales. These are: the 1480MW Yallourn Power Station in the Latrobe Valley the 420MW Tallawarra gas-fired power station near Wollongong in NSW, and the 180MW Hallett gas-fired power sation in SA. It is also currently seeking planning and permitting approval for a new 1000MW gas-fired power station at Yallourn and for a second plant at Tallawarra. In July 2007, TRUenergy was the first energy business in Australia to publicly commit to emissions reduction targets, including an overall reduction target of 60% in carbon emissions by 2050. TRUenergy is responsible for managing a 50 percent share in wind farm developer Roaring 40s on behalf of its parent company and is involved in a joint venture with Petratherm and Beach Energy to develop the Paralana geothermal power project in South Australia. TRUenergy also owns and operates Australia‟s underground gas storage facility near Port Campbell in Victoria. TRUenergy is a wholly owned subsidiary of CLP Holdings Limited (CLP), a Hong Kong listed entity with a current market capitalisation of just under A$20B. |
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