'Unsalvageable': power station suffering outages 32% of the time
Victoria's Yallourn coal-fired power station was grappling with unplanned outages for a third of 2024, a report has found.
The study by clean energy consultants Nexa Advisory revealed at least one of Yallourn's four generators was unexpectedly offline 32 per cent of the time.
The power station remains Victoria's second biggest source of power, providing nearly a quarter of the state's electricity.
But safety and maintenance concerns since 2021 have raised questions over the plant's reliability, with owner EnergyAustralia forced to bring forward $400 million in repairs to keep the station operating until its planned closure in 2028.
The report comes as the Victorian government plans to release its Renewable Energy Zones (REZs) - areas where wind and solar farms will be concentrated - which could be announced as soon as Friday, May 16.
Nexa Advisory CEO Stephanie Bashir said the new report showed Yallourn was "unsalvageable" and the government had to be ready to replace its contribution to the grid within three years.
"Right now, there is a one in three chance that there's an unplanned outage happening at Yallourn," Ms Bashir said.
"Yallourn is beyond repair, and I wouldn't want to speak for the government, but I'd say that's not just our view.
"Replacing that power by 2028 is in the government's hands, so the question is: are we progressing renewables quickly enough?"
The Yallourn plant was originally supposed to close in 2032, but in 2021 the Victorian government and EnergyAustralia struck a deal to bring the closure forward to mid-2028.
EnergyAustralia said the early closure was triggered by low wholesale energy prices and rising operational costs.
The owner had to shut down and repair each of Yallourn's four generators in 2023 and 2024 at a cost of $400 million because the units kept crashing in 2022, causing costly energy shortfalls.
But the Nexa Advisory report has revealed any benefits from this expensive repair were short lived, with unplanned outages hitting their highest ever point in 2024.
Unplanned outages averaged 1400 hours since 2012, but in 2024 they tipped past 4000 hours.
The power station has experienced increasing downtime - when generators are offline - over the past decade.
Each unit has been offline for the equivalent of 12 weeks per year since 2020.
"Yallourn is clearly limping to the end of its operational life," Ms Bashir said.
"How much more taxpayer money should go towards these assets that are really too old to put further maintenance into?"
The state government flatly denied reports in March 2025 it was considering keeping Yallourn open beyond 2025.
Energy and Resources Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said the claims were "false" and the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) had given no indication the plant would have to stay open to maintain the state grid.
But AEMO has warned demand could outstrip supply in Victoria when Yallourn exits in 2028.
Analysis by ACM - publisher of this masthead - also showed the government had a steep task to meet its 2035 emissions reduction target.
Victoria has gone from 10 per cent renewables in 2014 to about 40 per cent in 2025 - so a 30 per cent increase over a decade.
In order to get to 95 per cent it will have to jump a further 55 per cent in the next decade, which would mean adding renewables at double the rate it has so far.
Ms Bashir said the renewables pipeline would have to accelerate.
"That means streamlining planning and approvals, and ensuring projects don't get caught up in red tape," she said.
"We don't have a lot of time to waste, we can't wait for the ideal plan on a map."
The government's REZs will be the key to pushing through the backlog of renewable projects.
ACM understands the zones - which have been in development since 2021 - will be announced within the week.
The draft zones proposed in a February 2021 development plan covered large parts of regional Victoria, including:
The zones will cover the areas surrounding Warrnambool, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Wodonga, Traralgon and Morwell.
They will also include sweeping areas of high-intensity agricultural land, which has been a controversial part of the planning process.
The government created a new entity, VicGrid, to oversee and manage the development of the REZs, and provided $540 million to invest in short term projects and pave the way for the new zones.
"We established VicGrid to coordinate renewable energy planning, ensuring we build the right infrastructure in the right place, include local communities early in the planning process, and protect our energy, food and water security," a government spokesperson said.
"We're also creating funds for communities that host Renewable Energy Zones so they can share in the benefits."
Ms Bashir said there was no shortage of projects in the pipeline, but transmission was a looming issue.
There has been huge community backlash to the major VNI West and Western Renewables Link transmission projects, with the cost of VNI West also jumping more than 20 per cent in the past couple of years.
But even if they proceed, they won't be finished until long after Yallourn has closed.
"That's why we are calling for increased large-scale batteries to bolster the capacity of the current transmission, as well as government support for private intra-regional transmission," Ms Bashir said.
She said the government needed to pull every lever it had.
"We really need a more radical approach if we are going to keep the lights on," she said.
Victoria's Yallourn coal-fired power station was grappling with unplanned outages for a third of 2024, a report has found.
The study by clean energy consultants Nexa Advisory revealed at least one of Yallourn's four generators was unexpectedly offline 32 per cent of the time.
The power station remains Victoria's second biggest source of power, providing nearly a quarter of the state's electricity.
But safety and maintenance concerns since 2021 have raised questions over the plant's reliability, with owner EnergyAustralia forced to bring forward $400 million in repairs to keep the station operating until its planned closure in 2028.
The report comes as the Victorian government plans to release its Renewable Energy Zones (REZs) - areas where wind and solar farms will be concentrated - which could be announced as soon as Friday, May 16.
Nexa Advisory CEO Stephanie Bashir said the new report showed Yallourn was "unsalvageable" and the government had to be ready to replace its contribution to the grid within three years.
"Right now, there is a one in three chance that there's an unplanned outage happening at Yallourn," Ms Bashir said.
"Yallourn is beyond repair, and I wouldn't want to speak for the government, but I'd say that's not just our view.
"Replacing that power by 2028 is in the government's hands, so the question is: are we progressing renewables quickly enough?"
The Yallourn plant was originally supposed to close in 2032, but in 2021 the Victorian government and EnergyAustralia struck a deal to bring the closure forward to mid-2028.
EnergyAustralia said the early closure was triggered by low wholesale energy prices and rising operational costs.
The owner had to shut down and repair each of Yallourn's four generators in 2023 and 2024 at a cost of $400 million because the units kept crashing in 2022, causing costly energy shortfalls.
But the Nexa Advisory report has revealed any benefits from this expensive repair were short lived, with unplanned outages hitting their highest ever point in 2024.
Unplanned outages averaged 1400 hours since 2012, but in 2024 they tipped past 4000 hours.
The power station has experienced increasing downtime - when generators are offline - over the past decade.
Each unit has been offline for the equivalent of 12 weeks per year since 2020.
"Yallourn is clearly limping to the end of its operational life," Ms Bashir said.
"How much more taxpayer money should go towards these assets that are really too old to put further maintenance into?"
The state government flatly denied reports in March 2025 it was considering keeping Yallourn open beyond 2025.
Energy and Resources Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said the claims were "false" and the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) had given no indication the plant would have to stay open to maintain the state grid.
But AEMO has warned demand could outstrip supply in Victoria when Yallourn exits in 2028.
Analysis by ACM - publisher of this masthead - also showed the government had a steep task to meet its 2035 emissions reduction target.
Victoria has gone from 10 per cent renewables in 2014 to about 40 per cent in 2025 - so a 30 per cent increase over a decade.
In order to get to 95 per cent it will have to jump a further 55 per cent in the next decade, which would mean adding renewables at double the rate it has so far.
Ms Bashir said the renewables pipeline would have to accelerate.
"That means streamlining planning and approvals, and ensuring projects don't get caught up in red tape," she said.
"We don't have a lot of time to waste, we can't wait for the ideal plan on a map."
The government's REZs will be the key to pushing through the backlog of renewable projects.
ACM understands the zones - which have been in development since 2021 - will be announced within the week.
The draft zones proposed in a February 2021 development plan covered large parts of regional Victoria, including:
The zones will cover the areas surrounding Warrnambool, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Wodonga, Traralgon and Morwell.
They will also include sweeping areas of high-intensity agricultural land, which has been a controversial part of the planning process.
The government created a new entity, VicGrid, to oversee and manage the development of the REZs, and provided $540 million to invest in short term projects and pave the way for the new zones.
"We established VicGrid to coordinate renewable energy planning, ensuring we build the right infrastructure in the right place, include local communities early in the planning process, and protect our energy, food and water security," a government spokesperson said.
"We're also creating funds for communities that host Renewable Energy Zones so they can share in the benefits."
Ms Bashir said there was no shortage of projects in the pipeline, but transmission was a looming issue.
There has been huge community backlash to the major VNI West and Western Renewables Link transmission projects, with the cost of VNI West also jumping more than 20 per cent in the past couple of years.
But even if they proceed, they won't be finished until long after Yallourn has closed.
"That's why we are calling for increased large-scale batteries to bolster the capacity of the current transmission, as well as government support for private intra-regional transmission," Ms Bashir said.
She said the government needed to pull every lever it had.
"We really need a more radical approach if we are going to keep the lights on," she said.
Victoria's Yallourn coal-fired power station was grappling with unplanned outages for a third of 2024, a report has found.
The study by clean energy consultants Nexa Advisory revealed at least one of Yallourn's four generators was unexpectedly offline 32 per cent of the time.
The power station remains Victoria's second biggest source of power, providing nearly a quarter of the state's electricity.
But safety and maintenance concerns since 2021 have raised questions over the plant's reliability, with owner EnergyAustralia forced to bring forward $400 million in repairs to keep the station operating until its planned closure in 2028.
The report comes as the Victorian government plans to release its Renewable Energy Zones (REZs) - areas where wind and solar farms will be concentrated - which could be announced as soon as Friday, May 16.
Nexa Advisory CEO Stephanie Bashir said the new report showed Yallourn was "unsalvageable" and the government had to be ready to replace its contribution to the grid within three years.
"Right now, there is a one in three chance that there's an unplanned outage happening at Yallourn," Ms Bashir said.
"Yallourn is beyond repair, and I wouldn't want to speak for the government, but I'd say that's not just our view.
"Replacing that power by 2028 is in the government's hands, so the question is: are we progressing renewables quickly enough?"
The Yallourn plant was originally supposed to close in 2032, but in 2021 the Victorian government and EnergyAustralia struck a deal to bring the closure forward to mid-2028.
EnergyAustralia said the early closure was triggered by low wholesale energy prices and rising operational costs.
The owner had to shut down and repair each of Yallourn's four generators in 2023 and 2024 at a cost of $400 million because the units kept crashing in 2022, causing costly energy shortfalls.
But the Nexa Advisory report has revealed any benefits from this expensive repair were short lived, with unplanned outages hitting their highest ever point in 2024.
Unplanned outages averaged 1400 hours since 2012, but in 2024 they tipped past 4000 hours.
The power station has experienced increasing downtime - when generators are offline - over the past decade.
Each unit has been offline for the equivalent of 12 weeks per year since 2020.
"Yallourn is clearly limping to the end of its operational life," Ms Bashir said.
"How much more taxpayer money should go towards these assets that are really too old to put further maintenance into?"
The state government flatly denied reports in March 2025 it was considering keeping Yallourn open beyond 2025.
Energy and Resources Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said the claims were "false" and the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) had given no indication the plant would have to stay open to maintain the state grid.
But AEMO has warned demand could outstrip supply in Victoria when Yallourn exits in 2028.
Analysis by ACM - publisher of this masthead - also showed the government had a steep task to meet its 2035 emissions reduction target.
Victoria has gone from 10 per cent renewables in 2014 to about 40 per cent in 2025 - so a 30 per cent increase over a decade.
In order to get to 95 per cent it will have to jump a further 55 per cent in the next decade, which would mean adding renewables at double the rate it has so far.
Ms Bashir said the renewables pipeline would have to accelerate.
"That means streamlining planning and approvals, and ensuring projects don't get caught up in red tape," she said.
"We don't have a lot of time to waste, we can't wait for the ideal plan on a map."
The government's REZs will be the key to pushing through the backlog of renewable projects.
ACM understands the zones - which have been in development since 2021 - will be announced within the week.
The draft zones proposed in a February 2021 development plan covered large parts of regional Victoria, including:
The zones will cover the areas surrounding Warrnambool, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Wodonga, Traralgon and Morwell.
They will also include sweeping areas of high-intensity agricultural land, which has been a controversial part of the planning process.
The government created a new entity, VicGrid, to oversee and manage the development of the REZs, and provided $540 million to invest in short term projects and pave the way for the new zones.
"We established VicGrid to coordinate renewable energy planning, ensuring we build the right infrastructure in the right place, include local communities early in the planning process, and protect our energy, food and water security," a government spokesperson said.
"We're also creating funds for communities that host Renewable Energy Zones so they can share in the benefits."
Ms Bashir said there was no shortage of projects in the pipeline, but transmission was a looming issue.
There has been huge community backlash to the major VNI West and Western Renewables Link transmission projects, with the cost of VNI West also jumping more than 20 per cent in the past couple of years.
But even if they proceed, they won't be finished until long after Yallourn has closed.
"That's why we are calling for increased large-scale batteries to bolster the capacity of the current transmission, as well as government support for private intra-regional transmission," Ms Bashir said.
She said the government needed to pull every lever it had.
"We really need a more radical approach if we are going to keep the lights on," she said.
Victoria's Yallourn coal-fired power station was grappling with unplanned outages for a third of 2024, a report has found.
The study by clean energy consultants Nexa Advisory revealed at least one of Yallourn's four generators was unexpectedly offline 32 per cent of the time.
The power station remains Victoria's second biggest source of power, providing nearly a quarter of the state's electricity.
But safety and maintenance concerns since 2021 have raised questions over the plant's reliability, with owner EnergyAustralia forced to bring forward $400 million in repairs to keep the station operating until its planned closure in 2028.
The report comes as the Victorian government plans to release its Renewable Energy Zones (REZs) - areas where wind and solar farms will be concentrated - which could be announced as soon as Friday, May 16.
Nexa Advisory CEO Stephanie Bashir said the new report showed Yallourn was "unsalvageable" and the government had to be ready to replace its contribution to the grid within three years.
"Right now, there is a one in three chance that there's an unplanned outage happening at Yallourn," Ms Bashir said.
"Yallourn is beyond repair, and I wouldn't want to speak for the government, but I'd say that's not just our view.
"Replacing that power by 2028 is in the government's hands, so the question is: are we progressing renewables quickly enough?"
The Yallourn plant was originally supposed to close in 2032, but in 2021 the Victorian government and EnergyAustralia struck a deal to bring the closure forward to mid-2028.
EnergyAustralia said the early closure was triggered by low wholesale energy prices and rising operational costs.
The owner had to shut down and repair each of Yallourn's four generators in 2023 and 2024 at a cost of $400 million because the units kept crashing in 2022, causing costly energy shortfalls.
But the Nexa Advisory report has revealed any benefits from this expensive repair were short lived, with unplanned outages hitting their highest ever point in 2024.
Unplanned outages averaged 1400 hours since 2012, but in 2024 they tipped past 4000 hours.
The power station has experienced increasing downtime - when generators are offline - over the past decade.
Each unit has been offline for the equivalent of 12 weeks per year since 2020.
"Yallourn is clearly limping to the end of its operational life," Ms Bashir said.
"How much more taxpayer money should go towards these assets that are really too old to put further maintenance into?"
The state government flatly denied reports in March 2025 it was considering keeping Yallourn open beyond 2025.
Energy and Resources Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said the claims were "false" and the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) had given no indication the plant would have to stay open to maintain the state grid.
But AEMO has warned demand could outstrip supply in Victoria when Yallourn exits in 2028.
Analysis by ACM - publisher of this masthead - also showed the government had a steep task to meet its 2035 emissions reduction target.
Victoria has gone from 10 per cent renewables in 2014 to about 40 per cent in 2025 - so a 30 per cent increase over a decade.
In order to get to 95 per cent it will have to jump a further 55 per cent in the next decade, which would mean adding renewables at double the rate it has so far.
Ms Bashir said the renewables pipeline would have to accelerate.
"That means streamlining planning and approvals, and ensuring projects don't get caught up in red tape," she said.
"We don't have a lot of time to waste, we can't wait for the ideal plan on a map."
The government's REZs will be the key to pushing through the backlog of renewable projects.
ACM understands the zones - which have been in development since 2021 - will be announced within the week.
The draft zones proposed in a February 2021 development plan covered large parts of regional Victoria, including:
The zones will cover the areas surrounding Warrnambool, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Wodonga, Traralgon and Morwell.
They will also include sweeping areas of high-intensity agricultural land, which has been a controversial part of the planning process.
The government created a new entity, VicGrid, to oversee and manage the development of the REZs, and provided $540 million to invest in short term projects and pave the way for the new zones.
"We established VicGrid to coordinate renewable energy planning, ensuring we build the right infrastructure in the right place, include local communities early in the planning process, and protect our energy, food and water security," a government spokesperson said.
"We're also creating funds for communities that host Renewable Energy Zones so they can share in the benefits."
Ms Bashir said there was no shortage of projects in the pipeline, but transmission was a looming issue.
There has been huge community backlash to the major VNI West and Western Renewables Link transmission projects, with the cost of VNI West also jumping more than 20 per cent in the past couple of years.
But even if they proceed, they won't be finished until long after Yallourn has closed.
"That's why we are calling for increased large-scale batteries to bolster the capacity of the current transmission, as well as government support for private intra-regional transmission," Ms Bashir said.
She said the government needed to pull every lever it had.
"We really need a more radical approach if we are going to keep the lights on," she said.
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