Essay by Eric Worrall
Australia’s version of Chapter 11 – could Australia be on the verge of losing another coal plant?
Callide C co-owner Intergen goes into voluntary administration
Mark Ludlow Queensland bureau chief
Mar 24, 2023 – 9.21pmThe co-owners of the Callide C coal-fired power station in Central Queensland, have gone into voluntary administration.
Amid ongoing uncertainty over the power station – which has been beset by delays following an explosion at its C4 unit in May 2021 – Deloitte confirmed on late Friday afternoon it had been appointed to Intergen Energy’s companies relating to Callide C.
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Deloitte said the decision to go into administration had been made after shareholders of Intergen – which is now trading as Genuity – could not agree on future funding for the joint venture.
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Future wholesale electricity prices in Queensland jumped by up to $15 per megawatt hour earlier this month after CS Energy announced the return of its Callide C coal-fired power station would be further delayed by another six months to October.
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WUWT covered a massive explosion at Callide C in 2021 which knocked out substantial parts of the East Coast power grid. The explosion may have been caused by a hydrogen coolant leak.
This financial turmoil at Callide C could be fallout from the energy price caps imposed by the green left federal government last June, a promised carbon tax, hikes in resource taxes, and frequent public comments from government ministers about the need to get rid of coal.
If coal has no future, and energy prices are capped to prevent fossil fuel plants from making a profit on those occasions when they are allowed to operate, why should shareholders support coal plant maintenance?
AEMO warnings that Australia faces massive energy shortfalls in the near future, and that renewables are not being built fast enough to replace fossil fuel plants scheduled for decommissioning, to date are falling on deaf ears. Aussie Federal Government ministers responsible for overseeing our looming energy shortfall seem to believe Australia’s energy needs can be satisfied with wishful thinking and empty green platitudes.