New wind crushes coal on South West grid

South West WA received 35 per cent of its power from renewable energy in October, up from 25 per cent a year ago, due to two new wind farms and continued installation of rooftop solar panels.

The new Yandin and Warradarge wind farms in the Mid-West pushed wind’s share of generation from 12 to 17 per cent, to overtake rooftop solar panels that rose from 13 to 16 per cent.

Collie’s coal-fired power stations produced 29 per cent of the power consumed on the South West Interconnected System in October 2020, a massive cut from 37 per cent in 2019.

Coal-fired output dropped by more than a fifth, an indication of the immense financial pressure facing the town’s two privately-owned coal mines and the Bluewaters Power station.

Collie wobbles: WA power’s financial mess

Before it takes WA to a clean, green renewable energy future the State Government has problems a plenty in still vital coal-fired power.

Boiling ColdPeter Milne

Gas is now the dominant fossil fuel burnt to generate power, with 35 per cent of the market, but still lost 2 per cent of the market year on year due to the surge in renewable energy.

The 212-megawatt Yandin wind farm has generated power since July.

Warradarge started in August but only connected its full 180 MW in late October, indicating that future years could see a more power generated by wind in October.

Warradarge wind farm powers up

The start-up of Bright Energy’s Warradarge wind farm completes a massive addition of wind generation to the South-West of WA.

Boiling ColdPeter Milne

The data comes from OpenNEM, a platform that just extended its coverage to WA and, unlike market operator AEMO, includes generation from rooftop solar.

Main image: Warradarge wind farm. Source: Synergy