Reimagining Tarraleah
Tarraleah is an important part of our future clean energy vision and activity kicked off in late 2022, with a start on upgrades to the existing scheme and a dive into the commercial feasibility of reimagining Tarraleah.
What a fabulous time we had at the Tarraleah Open Day!!
Thank you to everyone who came along to our Tarraleah Open Day on Saturday 22 February. We welcomed over 700 people for a day filled with family fun, activities, food, live music and best of all, more than 400 lucky people got a first-hand look inside the power station!
We shared more information about what's proposed for Tarraleah's future and had heaps of activities to get kids (and parents) thinking about how clean energy is generated (and learning a thing or so about hydropower)
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A first-hand look at Tarraleah
Mark Saturday February 22 in your diary! We are hosting an Open Day at Tarraleah Village from 10am – a day filled with family fun and exclusive tours of an engineering and architectural marvel.
There will be food, music and entertainment, a treasure hunt for the whole family, history exhibitions and tours of the Tarraleah Power Station. Parking is available on-site at the Village. Shuttle buses will transport visitors between the Village and the station.
Come along to find out how we turn water into renewable energy and learn more about what is planned for Tarraleah’s future.
Butlers Gorge Road access
Butlers Gorge Road access is closed weekdays from 7am – 5pm. This closure will be in place for the foreseeable future as we continue upgrade works at Lake King William. The road access has been changed to ensure public safety.
The road is open outside of these hours, providing access to the lookout and boat ramp. There is no change to access to Mossy Marsh Dam which is open for anglers and recreational use.
The Lake King William campground will remain closed for the foreseeable future.
For the latest on this project, bookmark this page or hit the subscribe button to get updates straight to your inbox.
Environmental approvals
Environmental approvals
We are now starting the environmental approvals process for a future redevelopment that includes federal, state and local government approvals processes. This starts with a referral under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) being lodged. The EPBC Act is a national statute of environment and heritage protection and biodiversity conservation. It focuses on protecting matters of national environmental significance. Find out more here(External link).
The EPBC referral will determine if the project triggers a further formal assessment for potential impacts to what are termed 'Matters of National Environmental Significance' or MNES under the EPBC Act.
Through our studies, we identified that the construction and operation of a redeveloped scheme has the potential to impact on the following MNES:
- suitable habitat for the threatened riparian plant species, native wintercress (Barbarea australis) at limited locations in the Derwent River between Derwent Pumps and Wayatinah Lagoon
- Barbarea australis downstream of Liapootah and Wayatinah dams
- the ‘alpine sphagnum bogs and associated fens’ ecological vegetation community at Mossy Marsh
- habitat of the Tasmania wedge-tailed eagle, masked owl, Tasmanian devil, spotted tailed quoll and eastern quoll
- Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) downstream of Derwent Pumps and upstream of Wayatinah Lagoon.
We are working to mitigate impacts on these matters and conditions may be applied to the project as part of its approvals. The EPBC assessment process includes environmental baseline and impact assessment studies that allow us to identify potential impacts and mitigation measures. We are also working to ensure any potential downstream impacts are mitigated, by consulting with irrigators and recreational users of other waterways below Tarraleah.
How to keep up to date with the process
The EPBC Referral period for public comment has now closed. The Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water (DCCEEW) will now continue its assessment process. You can track progress through the assessment process at the EPBC Act Public Portal(External link) (the reference is EPBC Number: 2023/09482).
We will keep you informed of the options available to avoid and / or mitigate impacts and also any conditions on the EPBC approval, as we move through the process. This site will be regularly updated so keep an eye out and subscribe to stay in touch.
Curious to know more about the assessment process? We’ve put together some information and also details of how you can get involved here.
Scroll through this presentation to find out more about the proposed Tarraleah redevelopment and how we plan to gain commonwealth government approvals under the Environment Protection and B… |
Upgrade works
In April 2022, the Federal Government announced a funding commitment of up to $65M to support work progressing on Tarraleah. This includes looking at the commercial viability of a future redevelopment and upgrade works that position the scheme well for the future, regardless of the outcome of the commercial decision.
Work started in August 2022 on the staged program of upgrades that includes:
Construction of a new intake at Lake King William
Dam safety improvements at Mossy Marsh Dam and creating a new emergency spillway location
Road and services access to the upgrade construction sites.
Public access near construction areas at Lake King William and Mossy Marsh Dam have changed during the construction period to ensure everyone’s safety. As many of the work sites are quite remote, we're expecting limited impacts.
The good news is the boat ramp at Lake King William isn't affected.
The campsite will be impacted during the construction period. The Lake King William campground will remain closed for the foreseeable future.
To ensure public safety, Butlers Gorge Road (from the Lyell Highway turnoff) will be closed on weekdays between 7am and 5pm. This closure will be in place for the foreseeable future as we continue upgrade works at Lake King William.
Mossy Marsh Dam
The works are to improve safety of the existing embankment and provide a controlled and safe spillway. The works don’t affect or change the way water is managed in Mossy Marsh. There will also be upgrade works to Butlers Gorge Road, including new culverts, to maintain access in flood conditions.
Access to Mossy Marsh Dam has now re-opened for anglers and recreational users. Thanks for your patience as we allowed the area to rehabilitate after the completion of dam upgrade works.
Lake King William
The work to construct a new intake on Lake King William suits a range of future scenarios for the Tarraleah scheme.
The existing conveyances (No 1 and No 2 canal) are ageing and will need to be replaced with a new single conveyance in the future, regardless of a potential future redevelopment. Upgrading the conveyance would require a new intake on Lake King William, which is one of the works packages being progressed. The work will also address limitations of the existing ageing assets.
The location for the proposed intake is in a bay ~1 km north east of Clark Dam. If a Final Investment Decision is not reached in future on a potential redevelopment, these works will support the conveyance upgrade to ensure the scheme can continue to operate safely and reliably into the future.
Lake King William – Switchyard Track access and campground closure
During construction activity, we have made changes to Switchyard Track access and also temporarily closed the campground. The map shows the changes to the track access which will be for an extended period while work on the new intake structure construction is finished. The campground will be closed until further notice. We apologise for any inconvenience. You can continue to access the public boat ramp.
Butlers Gorge Road closure
Our teams are continuing works at Lake King William for constructing a new water intake and Butlers Gorge Road (from the Lyell Highway turnoff) remains closed on weekdays between 7am and 5pm.
The lookout and boat ramp are accessible outside of these hours and on public holidays and weekends. The Lake King William campground will remain closed for the foreseeable future.
Please be aware that we will need to do traffic management as we bring equipment to site.
The new intake
The concept below shows what the completed intake will look like.
A possible new future for the Tarraleah scheme
Sitting at the top of the Derwent hydropower scheme(External link), Tarraleah is one of our oldest and most recognisable assets, with a network of canals and 6 enormous penstocks that transport water 290m down to Tarraleah Station in the Nive Valley. Tarraleah's labyrinth of tunnels, canals and pipes were an engineering triumph that have supplied Tasmanians with dependable energy for more than 80 years.
In today's electricity market (called the NEM), the demand for clean energy from wind and solar is rising and so is the need for a way to fill the gaps when the sun isn't shining or the wind isn't blowing. That's where hydropower comes in! We're looking at how we can adapt our assets - including Tarraleah - to make sure they're ready to meet these new needs.
with support from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, we investigated how to reimagine the scheme, to make it better suited to deliver what the future electricity market will need. Our study showed the scheme could be redeveloped to increase capacity and flexibility - all valuable requirements in future.
For more information on these plans, read here.
The role of the community
We'll keep the community updated on what's happening with our commercial assessment and upgrade works and wherever possible, we'll avoid or minimise disruptions with on-ground works. Hit the subscribe button to receive updates straight to your inbox.
In the meantime, if you have a question about the works or a perspective you'd like to share, you can either contact us or post a question below.
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Project update - November
Upgrade works: Excavation at the site of a new water intake on Lake King William is well advanced (image at left). The new 1km tunnel currently under construction will eventually link up with the intake. These upgrade works are all part of future-proofing the scheme to deliver more energy, more efficiently.
Community pop-ups coming soon! Our team will now be out in the community in the new year, to chat about the findings of our specialist studies and to hear from you. Keep an eye on our page for opportunities to talk to us about how we can minimise any impacts and maximise the opportunities for neighbouring communities.
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Project update - October 2024
Project update - October 2024
Upgrade works: Construction of a new water intake on Lake King William is well advanced including the new 1km tunnel. We’ll be completing around 260 blasts to remove about 100,000 tonnes of material along the tunnel length.
The tunnel will connect the new intake to a future new conveyance that will feed water into Tarraleah Power Station.
We recently welcomed Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff and the Minister for Energy and Renewables Nick Duigan to Tarraleah for a first-hand look at upgrade works. They are pictured (left) with our team at the tunnel entrance.
Community pop-ups coming soon!
Our team will be out in the community in November, to chat about the findings of our specialist studies and to hear from you. Keep an eye on our page for opportunities to talk to us about how we can minimise any impacts and maximise the opportunities for neighbouring communities.
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Project update - July 2024
Draft Environmental Impact Statement Guidelines released
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released draft guidelines that will shape the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed Tarraleah redevelopment. We are looking at how to reimagine the Tarraleah scheme to be more flexible in its operation, increase its capacity and deliver more energy. If you want to have a say in how the project will consider and address environmental impacts, you can comment on the draft guidelines until Monday 12 August. Head to the EPA's website here - Draft EIS guidelines for the proposed Tarraleah redevelopment.(External link)
Upgrade works are progressing - new 1km tunnel underway
Work is underway on a staged program of upgrades in and around Lake King William. The key pieces of infrastructure to be constructed are a new intake, a downstream tunnel portal and a new 1km tunnel. Work on the tunnel started in June. It will connect the new intake at Lake King William to a future new conveyance that will feed water into Tarraleah Power Station.
Community considerations
In our consultations to date, some of the impacts and opportunities raised by the community are:
We will be sharing outcomes of these studies in October, so keep an eye out for opportunities to talk to us about how we can minimise any impacts and maximise the opportunities for neighbouring communities.
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Start of tunnelling work
We’ve reached an important milestone in our upgrade works on the Tarraleah hydropower scheme and we’re having a blast (pun intended). Work has started on the new 1 kilometre tunnel, with drilling and blasting now safely underway. The tunnel will connect the new intake at Lake King William to a future new conveyance that will feed water into Tarraleah Power Station. It is anticipated to take around 15 months to complete the ~260 blasts that will occur. We’ll be removing around 100,000 tonnes of material along the tunnel length. -
Latest project update
Keep up-to-date with the Tarraleah redevelopment project by checking out our latest project update. We provide information on the upgrade works underway, the findings of our community survey and what's happening with environmental approvals. You can read more here. As always, please get in touch if you have questions or would like to chat with a member of our project team.
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Opportunity to comment
We're getting ready for the next stage of upgrade works at Lake King William. This includes constructing the new water intake and approach channel, tunnel excavation, blasting and associated materials screening and crushing.
An Environmental Effects Report (EER) has been prepared based on guidelines provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Public comment is now invited on the report which you can access here.(External link) Comments are invited up to 25 November, 2023.
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Upgrade works progress
Upgrade works are progressing on the Tarraleah hydropower scheme. Hazell Bros Group have been busy on the excavation of the downstream tunnel entrance (technically called a portal) of the Lake King William tunnel. Construction of this 1km tunnel is set to start in early 2024. It will link the new intake at Lake King William to a future new conveyance that will feed water into Tarraleah Power Station.If you have questions about the upgrade works or the proposed new future for Tarraleah, please get in touch!
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Project approvals - environment
Project approvals
In March 2023, we lodged a referral to the Commonwealth government under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). We’ve put together some information on the process and what our studies found. Click on the link top right for more!
We will keep you updated as we progress our approvals and let you know when there are further opportunities to comment.
We are working to mitigate impacts on these matters and conditions may be applied to the project as part of its approvals. The EPBC assessment process includes environmental baseline and impact assessment studies that allow us to identify potential impacts and mitigation measures. We are also working to ensure any potential downstream impacts are mitigated, by consulting with irrigators and recreational users of other waterways below Tarraleah.
How to keep up to date with the process
The EPBC Referral period for public comment has now closed. The Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water (DCCEEW) will now continue its assessment process. You can track progress through the assessment process at the EPBC Act Public Portal(External link)(External link) (the reference is EPBC Number: 2023/09482).
We will keep you informed of the options available to avoid and / or mitigate impacts and also any conditions on the EPBC approval, as we move through the process. This site will be regularly updated so keep an eye out and subscribe to stay in touch.
Want to know more about the assessment process? We’ve put together some information and also details of how you can get involved here.
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Tell us about your special places
We’re keen to hear from the broader community about the places around Tarraleah that you value, so that we can ensure the values you hold in those places are protected.
- If there’s a particular place you want to tell us more about, head to our ‘pin map’ to let us know what you value, where your concerns are and share your ideas!
