Australia's power generation mix, now nearly two-thirds coal and natural gas, is undergoing a dramatic transformation, with nearly 50 GW of wind and solar resources under development.
The country's current power generation mix totals about 70 GW, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data, with 35% from coal and 28% from natural gas. It has pledged to achieve a net-zero emissions economy by 2050.
Planned capacity sits at more than 61 GW, with 45% from solar and 37% from wind.
Variable renewable energy resources are being added to the grid rapidly, according to the Australian Energy Market Operator, which oversees the country's electricity and natural gas markets. It is expected that as soon as 2025 all the country's electricity will be supplied by renewable resources during certain intervals.
Sydney-headquartered AGL Energy Ltd., which traces its history back to 1837, is the country's largest power generator, according to Market Intelligence data, with more than 8.9 GW, mostly coal, in operation and another 3.7 GW planned.
Next-largest is Singapore-headquartered Sun Cable Pte. Ltd., with a planned portfolio of 11.9 GW. The company is planning a massive solar field in Australia's Northern Territory accompanied by energy storage resources, connected to Singapore by a 4,200-kilometer subsea high-voltage direct-current transmission cable. The energy infrastructure could provide about 15% of Singapore's electricity needs.
Iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., through a subsidiary, said in February that it plans to develop 5.4 GW from wind, solar and storage resources in Western Australia, in part to supply its own operations. Other Australian miners have sought renewable energy supplies for their operations through power purchase agreements.
One North American company active in Australia is Calgary, Alberta-headquartered TransAlta Corp., which has been operating gas-fired and cogeneration plants in Western Australia, primarily to serve mining operations, since the mid-1990s.
Spain-headquartered Iberdrola SA is active in Australia as well, with a portfolio of five operating onshore wind farms; the output of several other wind farms under contract; and other wind, solar and battery storage facilities in development. On April 20, the company announced the acquisition of a planned 1-GW onshore wind facility in North Queensland, called Mount James.
Another Spain-headquartered company, Corporación Acciona Energías Renovables SA, in early May began construction on what it said is Australia's largest onshore wind farm to date, the 1,026-MW Macintyre complex. Ark Energy Corporation Pty. Ltd., an Australian subsidiary of Korea Zinc Co. Ltd., owns a 30% interest in the larger of the two Macintyre wind farms, and Queensland government-owned power generator CleanCo Queensland Ltd. owns the smaller unit. Construction of the A$2 billion project is expected to be completed in 2024, Acciona said.
As in North America and Europe, Australian power generators are remaking their fleets to reduce emissions. Origin Energy Ltd. in February said it would shut its four-unit, 2,880-MW Eraring Steam Power Plant in 2025, instead of a previously planned shutdown in 2032.
"[T]he reality is the economics of coal-fired power stations are being put under increasing, unsustainable pressure by cleaner and lower cost generation, including solar, wind and batteries," Origin Energy CEO Frank Calabria said in a news release. The plant site will be used for up to 700 MW of battery storage capacity, the company said. Origin Energy is an electricity and natural gas retail provider as well as an LNG exporter.