| CONCEPT planning approval has been given for coal or gas-fired power stations either side of Sydney.The new Bayswater power station near Muswellbrook in the NSW Hunter Valley has been approved for 2000MW to accompany Macquarie Generation’s present complex.Minister for Infrastructure, Tony Kelly (pictured) said the final source of fuel will be determined at the project application stage.Named the Bayswater B project, it is subject to 23 conditions including carbon capture and air quality.The minister said today’s approval ensures the development can progress if required in the medium to long term as demand grows.″However, ultimately it will be the electricity market and how it is regulated in the future which determines whether the project is implemented and when it may be developed,″ he said.Delta’s Mount Piper facility north-west of Lithgow was the other concept approval granted by the minister.Here Delta wants to build a 2000MW natural gas or coal unit beside the existing Mount Piper power station.While not an answer to NSW’s tightening electricity supply position, the two approvals do clear one of the hurdles needed for any new development.It will still be a race against time to see if the state meets it power requirements.Stations of this size do not get built in a day and generally take about five years following the government approval processes.The approval process has been known to take over two years. |
