Gladstone power station
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Gladstone power station is a 1,680-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant in Queensland, Australia.
Contents
Location
The map below shows the location of the plant, near Stanwell, Queensland.
Background on Plant
The Gladstone power station is a 1,680 megawatt (MW) coal-fired power station which is owned by a consortium of companies and operated by NRG Gladstone Operating Services, a subsidiary of the U.S. energy company NRG Energy.
The Stanwell Corporation states that "the station was commissioned in 1976 and later purchased from the Queensland Electricity Commission in 1994 by a joint venture comprising Rio Tinto Aluminium, three of its Japanese partners in Boyne Smelters Limited (BSL), and NRG, a US based energy provider ... Following a 2007 restructure of Queensland’s energy assets, Stanwell is responsible for trading the output from Gladstone Power Station."[1]
Since 1994, the station has been operated by NRG Gladstone Operating Services on behalf of Joint Venture participants Rio Tinto Ltd (42.125%), NRG Energy Inc (37.5%), SLMA GPS Pty Ltd (8.50%), Ryowa II GPS Pty Ltd (7.125%) and YKK GPS (Queensland) Pty Ltd (4.75%).[2]
According to a 2019 analysis of the federal government’s National Pollutant Inventory, Gladstone power station emitted 111 kilograms of mercury between 2017 and 2018, the fourth highest amount in the country.[3] An April 2020 update to the government's National Pollutant Inventory (NPI) found that larger-particle pollutants from Gladstone increased from 160,800 kilograms in 2017-18 to 190,900 in 2018-19, while smaller particulates rose by 23% from 56,932 kilograms in 2017-18 to 69,793 kilograms.[4]
Proposed Shutdown
The power station is scheduled to be shut down in 2029.[5] In response to a report that two of its reactors might be shut down sooner, Queensland Energy Minister Mark Bailey said coal and gas generators would "continue to play a significant role in Queensland to 2030".[5] In October 2019 it was reported that the plant would continue to operate until 2035, per the Australian Energy Market Operator's database of coal-fired plants.[6]
Plant Details
- Sponsor: NRG Gladstone
- Parent company: Rio Tinto (42.125%), NRG Energy (37.5%), SLMA GPS Pty Ltd (8.50%), Ryowa II GPS Pty Ltd (7.125%) and YKK GPS Pty Ltd (4.75%)
- Location: Stanwell, Queensland, Australia
- Coordinates: -23.8506672, 151.2197108 (exact)
- Status: Operating
- Gross capacity: 1,680 MW (Units 1-6: 280 MW)
- Type: Subcritical
- In service: 1976-82
- Coal type:
- Coal source:
- Source of financing:
Contact Details
Gladstone Power Station
Hanson Road Gladstone QLD 4680
Website: http://www.nrggos.com.au/
Articles and resources
References
- ↑ Standwell Corporation, "Gladstone Power Station", Stanwell Corporation, accessed June 2010.
- ↑ NRG, "About Us", NRG Gladstone, accessed April 2019
- ↑ Adam Carey "Mercury emissions from Victoria's coal-fired power plants top nation", The Age, March 31, 2019
- ↑ Tony Moore, Queensland's older coal-fired power plants see major jump in emissions, Brisbane Times, Apr. 9, 2020
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Power Station rejects 2020-21 closure warning, Gladstone Observer, Nov. 20, 2017
- ↑ Qld to close coal-fired power station a decade early, Australian Financial Review, Oct. 7, 2019
Related SourceWatch articles
- Australia and coal
- Carbon Capture and Storage in Australia
- Existing coal-fired power stations in Queensland
