General News
3 July, 2024
North West mayor has major concerns over CopperString plan
Janene Fegan says without a substation, the $5 billion project won't help Julia Creek's growth plans.
Millions of dollars in renewable energy and critical minerals projects are in doubt because the proposed CopperString rollout will not deliver the future energy needs of McKinlay Shire.
Days ahead of an official sod-turning event at Hughenden, where Premier Steven Miles is expected to pose for photographs and declare CopperString’s integral role in unlocking the economic potential of the North West, McKinlay Shire mayor Janene Fegan has renewed calls for the transmission line project to include a substation at Julia Creek.
Cr Fegan said multiple local project proposals – including a 220ha industrial estate, cotton gin, up to six renewable energy projects and a Critical Minerals Zone – were being hampered due to the lack of reliable power at Julia Creek.
Cr Fegan said she planned to use the sod-turning event on Tuesday as an opportunity to lobby directly to the Premier about the need for a Julia Creek substation to be included among the recommendations of an infrastructure review being finalised by state-owned energy company Powerlink.
“My (council) CEO has put on my shining armour, given me a sword and pointed me towards Hughenden to fight for our region,” Cr Fegan told North West Weekly.
“We just keep repeating that if a substation is not placed at Julia Creek there won’t be much point to doing all the critical minerals projects because there just won’t be enough power.
“If there isn’t enough power then all the mines will have to run on generators, which just defeats the purpose of having critical mineral and renewables projects.
“Workers and contractors need somewhere to base themselves but we can’t complete council projects, such as the industrial estate, because of the power issues – we have got the land set aside but we don’t have power. So it’s just fruitless.”
Cr Fegan said Julia Creek, which derives most of its power from the Cape River Substation at Charters Towers, had faced a decades-long history of sudden power outages, including one as recently as last week.
There are up to six substations proposed along the 840km CopperString project corridor, however the current transmission line rollout will potentially include a 400km distance between the proposed substations at Hughenden and Cloncurry.
Cr Fegan said McKinlay Shire had repeatedly lobbied for this gap to be closed through the construction of a substation at Julia Creek.
In response to this lobbying, State Minister for Energy Mick de Brenni announced earlier this year that Powerlink would conduct a technical study to explore the delivery of enabling network infrastructure to communities along the CopperString corridor.
A spokesperson for Mr de Brenni said the Critical Minerals and Renewables Enablement Study would determine the network infrastructure required to ensure the CopperString project would support the development of new resources, renewables and manufacturing projects as well as support reliable energy supply to nearby communities.
It is understood the report is being finalised by Powerlink before it will be presented to the Minister for Energy for review.
Cr Fegan said she would also raise the need for a substation at a critical minerals public forum held in Julia Creek this week, where Powerlink officials were expected to attend.
“I will continue to use these opportunities to speak about this issue because without a substation there will be insufficient power for any expansion of our council area,” she said.
“If Julia Creek does not get a substation, we are going to be battling up a hill, the CopperString project is going to be a big white elephant – because only some of the areas in our region will receive the benefits.”