| Part of the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker, a Global Energy Monitor project. |
| Related categories: |
| Part of the Global Coal Plant Tracker, a Global Energy Monitor project. |
| Related coal trackers: |
Kwinana power station is an operating power station of at least 200-megawatts (MW) in Naval Base, Western Australia, Australia with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Kwinana power station | Naval Base, Western Australia, Australia | -32.198337, 115.775155 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Phase A Unit 1, Phase A Unit 2, Phase C Unit 1, Phase C Unit 2: -32.198337, 115.775155
- Unit HEGT1, Unit HEGT2: -32.1983, 115.7752
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phase A Unit 1 | retired | coal - subbituminous | 120 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2010 |
| Phase A Unit 2 | retired | coal - subbituminous | 120 | subcritical | – | 1971 | 2010 |
| Phase C Unit 1 | retired | coal - subbituminous | 200 | subcritical | – | 1976 | 2015 |
| Phase C Unit 2 | retired | coal - subbituminous | 200 | subcritical | – | 1978 | 2015 |
| Unit HEGT1 | operating[1] | gas[2] | 100[2] | gas turbine[2] | not found | 2014[2] | – |
| Unit HEGT2 | operating[1] | gas[2] | 100[2] | gas turbine[2] | not found | 2014[2] | – |
CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Phase A Unit 1 | Verve Energy [100.0%] | – |
| Phase A Unit 2 | Verve Energy [100.0%] | – |
| Phase C Unit 1 | Verve Energy [100.0%] | – |
| Phase C Unit 2 | Verve Energy [100.0%] | – |
| Unit HEGT1 | Synergy[1] | Synergy [100.0%] |
| Unit HEGT2 | Synergy[1] | Synergy [100.0%] |
Background
Kwinana power station (KPS) is owned and operated by Verve Energy, the West Australian government owned generation utility. The power station is located 20 kilometres south of Perth and was commissioned in November 1970.[3] (Verve Energy was later merged into Synergy.)
The power station was initially designed to run on oil but after the oil price shocks of the 1970's it was converted to burn coal. Later on gas-firing was introduced and in 2005 oil-firing recommenced.
The power station comprised Stages A, B and C and -- along with a 20 megawatt gas turbine -- had a total generating capacity of 900 MW. In December 2008 Stage B was closed. Two high efficiency gas turbines are currently under construction and scheduled to be commissioned by the summer of 2011-12.[3] Stages A and C ran on coal.
Verve Energy had announced that it planned to cease burning coal at the plant by 2008 when gas became available following the completion of the Dampier to Bunbury Natural Gas Pipeline (DBNGP). However, due to ongoing uncertainties about gas supply, Verve retreated from the coal-phase out and has announced plans to "continue burning coal at KPS for some years to come issues are resolved".[4]
In early 2008 Verve wrote that "current forecasts indicate that KPS will burn up to 592,000 tonnes of coal per annum until July 2009 (KPS burnt between 452,000 and 549,000 tonnes of coal per annum in the five years to July 2007). It was planned to close the two units in Stage A at KPS in 2010, to which the coal burn is anticipated to drop to about 162,000 tonnes per annum."[4]
The two units of Kwinana-A were shut down in 2010,[5] and the two units of Kwinana-C were shut down in 2015.[6]
In 2023, the energy company Synergy was developing plans to build a large-scale lithium ion battery system at the site of the decommissioned power station.[7] The energy storage battery system was estimated to be constructed in 2023 and commissioned in 2024.[7]
Financial and environmental benefits of closure
However the continued operation of the plants became untenable. In April 2015 the plant was closed "approximately six months ahead of schedule." Synergy also noted that the utility "achieved operational savings through the earlier than scheduled closure of the Kwinana" power station. The utility reported that the closure was driven by "market conditions and uneconomic cost of supply."[8]
Synergy also noted that "due to the closure, emissions to air of carbon dioxide (CO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) will reduce across the greater Kwinana site, with only efficient natural gas fired gas turbines remaining in operation."[9]
Generating units (as of Sept 2007)
In its 2008 Environmental Improvement Program Verve Energy set out the history of each of the generating units at the plant. These are:[10]
- Stage A Unit 1 120 MW: Sep 1970 Bunker oil, Aug 1983 Coal, Jun 1987 Gas. The unit currently runs on either coal or gas;
- Stage A Unit 2 120 MW: Nov 1971 Bunker oil, December 1982 Coal, December 1987 Gas. The unit currently runs on either coal or gas;
- Stage B Unit 3 120 MW: Oct 1972 Bunker oil, November 1983 Gas, October 2005 Low sulfur fuel oil. The unit was decommissioned in December 2008.
- Stage B Unit 4 120 MW: Dec 1973 Bunker oil, April 1984 Gas, October 2005 Low sulfur fuel oil. The unit was decommissioned in December 2008.
- Stage C Unit 5 200 MW: Mar 1976 Bunker oil, April 1979 Coal, October 1984 Gas, October 2005. Low sulfur fuel oil. The unit currently runs on Low sulfur fuel oil, Coal or gas.
- Unit 6 200 MW: April 1978 Bunker oil, April 1978 Coal, October 1984 Gas, March 2005. The unit currently runs on Low sulfur fuel oil, Coal or gas.
- 20 MW Gas Turbine. This unit runs on Low sulfur distillate or gas.
Waste disposal
Verve Energy states that "Furnace ash (bottom ash) accumulates in hoppers at the bottom of each coal firing boiler furnace where it is hydraulically extracted from the hopper and then put through a crusher and pumped to a lined storage pond on site." Fly ash, which accumulates on the electrostatic precipitator plates. is "removed, slurried and pumped off site through a pipeline to Perron Quarry, which is a licensed disposal facility."[11]
The company states that "to recycle the water component of the slurry and to prevent groundwater contamination from the fly ash disposal, Verve Energy abstracts groundwater down gradient of the quarry for re-use in KPS operations. By pumping recovery bores, Verve Energy is both intercepting the migration of contaminated groundwater offsite and recycling the process water at KPS. A monitoring bore network around the quarry and production (recovery) bores is used to monitor groundwater levels and groundwater quality. The monitoring and hydrogeological reports confirm that the abstraction is successful in intercepting the sulfate plume."[11]
The company also states that "since the 1980s a number of extensions to the quarry walls has increased the storage capacity of Perron Quarry. The storage capacity is approximately 920,000 tonnes and the current level is 800,000 tonnes. Initiatives have been undertaken by KPS to address storage limitations of Perron Quarry. The initiatives that have been explored include the re-use of fly ash for the horticultural industry, as a road building material, as an additive in concrete, and as filler in brick and tile manufacture."[12]
In its 2015-16 Annual report Synergy stated that "following closure of Kwinana power station in 2015, planning has commenced for the rehabilitation of the site and associated Perron Quarry fly ash storage area."[13]
Greenhouse gas emissions
In its 2008 Environmental Improvement Program, Verve stated that "In 2006/07 KPS emitted 1.68 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e) at a carbon intensity of 877 tonnes of CO2-e per gigawatt hour of electricity sent out."[11]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 https://web.archive.org/web/20221029104440/https://www.synergy.net.au/About-us/Who-we-are/What-we-do/Electricity-generation/Power-stations. Archived from the original on 29 October 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 https://web.archive.org/web/20210603162634/https://esdnews.com.au/controlling-the-curve/. Archived from the original on 03 June 2021.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Verve Energy, "Kwinana", Verve Energy website, accessed December 2010.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Verve Energy, "Kwinana Power Station: Coal Burning Environmental Improvement Plan 2008/2009", Verve Energy, February 2008, page 7.
- ↑ Verve to retire Kwinana Power Station Stage C, Government of Western Australia, Jun. 27, 2013
- ↑ Kwinana Power Station, Power Technology, accessed November 2018
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Verve Energy, "Kwinana Battery Energy Storage System 2", Synergy, Accessed: May 2023, page 7.
- ↑ Synergy, 2014-15 Annual Report", Synergy, page 11.
- ↑ Synergy, 2014-15 Annual Report", Synergy, page 33.
- ↑ Verve Energy, "Kwinana Power Station: Coal Burning Environmental Improvement Plan 2008/2009", Verve Energy, February 2008, page 9.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Verve Energy, "Kwinana Power Station: Coal Burning Environmental Improvement Plan 2008/2009", Verve Energy, February 2008, page 10.
- ↑ Verve Energy, "Kwinana Power Station: Coal Burning Environmental Improvement Plan 2008/2009", Verve Energy, February 2008, page 25.
- ↑ Synergy, 2015-16 Annual Report", Synergy, September 2016, page 10. (Pdf)
Additional data
To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datases, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
