Latrobe Valley energy companies look to big batteries to shift away from coal
Four large-scale storage projects are set to replace Gippsland's fleet of aging power stations.
Jacob Wallace
November 06, 2025
As the Latrobe Valley’s coal-fired power stations reach retirement age, the companies that run them are looking to shift to renewable energy projects that will continue to power the state.
End of an era: Coal-fired power stations can’t last forever. The average lifespan of a coal-fired plant in Australia is 29 years and the youngest in Victoria (Loy Yang) is now 32-years-old.
Older and less consistent: As these power stations age they become less reliable.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) had expected 17 planned outages at Latrobe Valley’s coal-fired power stations between October 2024 and March 2025.
Instead, there were 145 outages.
Cheaper forms of energy: The CSIRO and AEMO have both found that solar and wind power are the cheapest forms of energy generation. It’s no wonder that the energy companies running Latrobe Valley’s power stations are looking to shift to renewable projects.
The sites of retired (or retiring) coal-fired power plants
Hazelwood, run by ENGIE and closed in 2017.
Yallourn is run by EnergyAustralia and is expected to close in 2028.
Loy Yang A is run by AGL and is expected to close in 2035.
Loy Yang B is run by Alinta Energy and is set to close in 2035.
What do these companies have planned now that coal is on the way out?
Energy companies in Victoria’s east are mostly looking to install large battery storage systems.
These systems can hold excess solar and wind power when less people are using electricity during the day – and then dispense that power during peak energy hours in the afternoon and during the night.
What are the specific projects?
Hazelwood
Completed in June 2023, the Hazelwood Battery Energy Storage System is a 150MW battery farm which has the capacity to store an hour of energy generation from 30,000 home rooftop solar systems.
Yallourn
EnergyAustralia plans to construct The Wooreen Energy Storage System (a 350MW battery farm), which will be located next to Jeeralang Power Station.
The project expects to see up to 80 jobs during construction.
Construction began early this year and the project aims to be completed by 2027.
EnergyAustralia’s goal is to be carbon neutral by 2050.
Loy Yang A
AGL is currently undertaking a feasibility study to establish the viability of a solar panel recycling facility at Loy Yang.
AGL received approval to construct a 200MW battery farm at Loy Yang in 2021. Construction was slated to be completed in 2023 but the battery is not yet online.
Loy Yang B
Alinta Energy was granted permits to construct a 250MW battery storage system at Loy Yang B last year. The system is expected to be operational by 2028.
