Australian power company AGL Energy has decided to not move forward with plans to build a 250MW pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) project at Kanmantoo copper mine in South Australia.
The decision was made by Australian mining company Hillgrove Resources, the owner of the Kanmantoo copper mine. It said it intends to continue mining at the site.
AGL Wholesale Markets executive general manager Richard Wrightson explained that Hillgrove and AGL could not reach agreement on the PHES project.
Wrightson said: “The signing was the start of a multiple-stage process to progress the project and the agreements were subject to several conditions, which needed to be satisfied within specified timeframes.
“As a result, Hillgrove and AGL have mutually agreed to terminate the PHES Project Agreement without any ongoing obligation on either party.”
In April 2019, Hillgrove and AGL signed binding agreements, under which Hillgrove has agreed to sell the right to develop, own and operate the PHES project at the Kanmantoo mine site.
The company noted that several conditions mentioned in the agreement remained unsatisfied.
Wrightson added: “We have announced a number of storage projects to provide the firming capacity with the market needs such as the 100MW Wandoan battery with Vena Energy in Queensland, a 30MW battery with ElectraNet in South Australia, and four 50MW batteries to be built by Maoneng Group in NSW.
“We are also looking at the feasibility of a pumped hydro plant at Bells Mountain in NSW, which if progressed will provide more than 250MW of new storage capacity, and we are working with the NSW Government on a proposal to build a 50MW battery at Broken Hill.”