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$708 million for WA network upgrades

WA minister steps down

The Western Australian (WA) government has announced a $708 million investment to upgrade the state’s main electricity network.

$575 million will go towards increasing capacity of the network’s northern section, including a new 330kV double circuit transmission line between Malaga and Pinjar.

The further $133 million will be invested towards planning for new lines, reinforcements and upgrades around areas such as Kwinana, Collie, Geraldton and Perth.

“This is the largest investment in transmission infrastructure in WA in more than 10 years and is an important step on the transformation of our main electricity grid,” WA Premier Roger Cook said.

“Growing our electricity network is critical to unlocking our renewable energy potential – to reduce our own emissions, and to help countries across the region reduce theirs.

“This investment alone will allow us to slash emissions by around 2.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, create significant job opportunities in the regions, and put our State on the path to becoming a global renewable energy powerhouse.”

To support the transition, the WA government will establish PoweringWA to coordinate the build of transmission, renewable generation and storage infrastructure.

“By upgrading the northern network, we can increase the output of existing wind generation as well as connect around a gigawatt of new wind and solar generation capacity, which is almost double the amount of large-scale renewables currently connected,” Energy Minister Bill Johnston said.

“Working closely with industry and communities, we can ensure our main network delivers a reliable supply of low-emissions electricity to meet our collective decarbonisation goals.”

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