Tarong North power station
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Tarong North power station is an operating power station of at least 445-megawatts (MW) in Nanango, Queensland, Australia.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Tarong North power station | Nanango, Queensland, Australia | -26.777293, 151.914311 (exact) |
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1: -26.777293, 151.914311
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year | Retired year | Emergency/Backup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Operating | coal: subbituminous[1] | 445 | supercritical | 2003 | 2037 (planned) | False |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Stanwell Corp Ltd [100%] | Stanwell Corp Ltd [100.0%] |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): domestic
Ownership Tree
This ownership tree is part of the Global Energy Ownership Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.
Background
The Tarong North power station is operated by Tarong Energy. It was commissioned in 2002 and generates 443 megawatts.
The power station sources coal from the adjacent Meandu mine, which is owned by Tarong Energy.[2] On purchase of the mine from Rio Tinto in 2008, Tarong believed that its reserves were limited but sufficient to allow a transition to the Kunioon Coal Project. However, further reserves have been discovered sufficient to supply both the Tarong and Tarong North power stations until 2025.[3]
According to the May and October 2023 Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) updates, the station was expected to close in 2037. [4][5]
In May 2025, Stanwell began a $70 million overhaul at Tarong North power station. The work was expected to continue until July 2025.[6] The overhaul at Tarong North was reportedly completed in August 2025.[7]
In December 2025, a report by Reliability Watch revealed that Tarong North was among the worst-performing coal units in Australia’s National Electricity Market between April and September 2025, being available less than 50% of the time in that six-month period.[8][9]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ https://www.gem.wiki/Coal_source_methodology_for_the_Global_Coal_Plant_Tracker.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "What we do: Meandu Mine", Tarong Energy website, accessed May 2011.
- ↑ Tarong Energy, "Kunioon Coal Resource", Tarong Energy website, accessed May 2011.
- ↑ 05/05/2023 Generating unit expected closure year – May 2023, AEMO, May 5, 2023.
- ↑ Generating Unit Expected Closure year - October 2023, AEMO, November 2, 2023
- ↑ “Tarong North’s $70M planned unit overhaul underway,” Energy Source & Distribution, May 13, 2025
- ↑ “Tarong Power Station gets $70M overhaul,” Utility Magazine, September 17, 2025
- ↑ ““Persistent, clustered breakdowns:” Coal clunkers fail the grid with 119 outages,” Renew Economy, December 9, 2025
- ↑ “Six Months of Breakdowns: Ageing, Unreliable Coal Stations are Failing Our Community,” Reliability Watch, December 2025
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
