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Released June 30, 2023 | GALWAY, IRELAND
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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Two key contracts have been awarded for the world's largest pumped-hydro storage (PHES) project in Australia.
The government of the Queensland region has awarded the front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract to Water2Wire, a joint venture by engineering firm Mott MacDonald (Croydon, England), GHD (Sydney, Australia) and Canada's Stantec (Edmonton, Canada), for the US$8 billion Pioneer-Burdekin project.
A second six-month geo-technical shallow drilling program, which will be used to inform the project design, was awarded to Twin Hills Engineering and Drilling (Queensland , Australia). Pioneer-Burdekin is a pumped hydro energy storage project that will generate 5,000 megawatts (MW) for 24 hours, equivalent to around half of the entire state's peak power usage. Located in the western Pioneer Valley, approximately 75 kilometers west of the city of Mackay, it will take advantage of the steep, mountainous topography to ensure large vertical separation between the reservoirs. It is also located close to high quality wind and solar generation sources in the Central and Northern Queensland Renewable Energy Zones. The first stage of construction will be completed by 2032.
Australia's Minister for Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen Mick de Brenni, said: "The Pioneer-Burdekin Pumped Hydro Project is the cornerstone of the Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan, and will be the largest pumped hydro scheme in the world. This mega pumped hydro project will act like a giant battery, and when connected to our Queensland SuperGrid, will underpin the reliability of our publicly owned grid by storing the energy generated by our renewable energy zones. The project is poised to offer hundreds of supply chain opportunities, and with application of the Palaszczuk Governments' signature Buy Queensland Procurement Policy, local businesses like Twin Hills and Water2Wire will be the preferred project partners. It's regions like Mackay that are at the center of Queensland's renewable energy transformation -- which will unleash new industrial jobs in hydrogen, renewables, manufacturing, and critical minerals."
The project--along with a sister project at Borumba-- and large-scale wind and solar rollouts, forms part of a wider US$41 billion energy investment plan aimed at allowing Queensland to reach 70% renewable energy by 2032 and 80% by 2035.
Water2Wire has a long track record of delivering pumped hydro projects such as Queensland Hydro's Borumba pumped hydro project (FEED design for proposed new Borumba Dam), the QMCA (Queensland Major Contractors Association) 250-MW Kidston PHES, the 1,500-MW Lake Onslow PHES (New Zealand), and the 3,000-MW Bath County PHES (U.K.).
In related news, the Queensland government has also committed US$4billion for the Borumba Pumped Hydro project, a 2,000-MW PHES project at Lake Borumba, located near Imbil. The total project cost is estimated to be US$9.4 billion. It will include the construction of six new dams, an upgrade to dam infrastructure at Lake Borumba and an underground power station. The project is due to be completed by 2030.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
The government of the Queensland region has awarded the front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract to Water2Wire, a joint venture by engineering firm Mott MacDonald (Croydon, England), GHD (Sydney, Australia) and Canada's Stantec (Edmonton, Canada), for the US$8 billion Pioneer-Burdekin project.
A second six-month geo-technical shallow drilling program, which will be used to inform the project design, was awarded to Twin Hills Engineering and Drilling (Queensland , Australia). Pioneer-Burdekin is a pumped hydro energy storage project that will generate 5,000 megawatts (MW) for 24 hours, equivalent to around half of the entire state's peak power usage. Located in the western Pioneer Valley, approximately 75 kilometers west of the city of Mackay, it will take advantage of the steep, mountainous topography to ensure large vertical separation between the reservoirs. It is also located close to high quality wind and solar generation sources in the Central and Northern Queensland Renewable Energy Zones. The first stage of construction will be completed by 2032.
Australia's Minister for Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen Mick de Brenni, said: "The Pioneer-Burdekin Pumped Hydro Project is the cornerstone of the Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan, and will be the largest pumped hydro scheme in the world. This mega pumped hydro project will act like a giant battery, and when connected to our Queensland SuperGrid, will underpin the reliability of our publicly owned grid by storing the energy generated by our renewable energy zones. The project is poised to offer hundreds of supply chain opportunities, and with application of the Palaszczuk Governments' signature Buy Queensland Procurement Policy, local businesses like Twin Hills and Water2Wire will be the preferred project partners. It's regions like Mackay that are at the center of Queensland's renewable energy transformation -- which will unleash new industrial jobs in hydrogen, renewables, manufacturing, and critical minerals."
The project--along with a sister project at Borumba-- and large-scale wind and solar rollouts, forms part of a wider US$41 billion energy investment plan aimed at allowing Queensland to reach 70% renewable energy by 2032 and 80% by 2035.
Water2Wire has a long track record of delivering pumped hydro projects such as Queensland Hydro's Borumba pumped hydro project (FEED design for proposed new Borumba Dam), the QMCA (Queensland Major Contractors Association) 250-MW Kidston PHES, the 1,500-MW Lake Onslow PHES (New Zealand), and the 3,000-MW Bath County PHES (U.K.).
In related news, the Queensland government has also committed US$4billion for the Borumba Pumped Hydro project, a 2,000-MW PHES project at Lake Borumba, located near Imbil. The total project cost is estimated to be US$9.4 billion. It will include the construction of six new dams, an upgrade to dam infrastructure at Lake Borumba and an underground power station. The project is due to be completed by 2030.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
