Ord River Hydro Project

The Ord River Hydro Project achieves two key aims: it provides electricity to the Argyle Diamond Mine and the nearby towns of Kununurra and Wyndham, and does so in an environmentally friendly way. Indeed, the Ord River Hydro Station has enabled renewable energy to become the sole source of electricity for the region.

Better still, the project has set a host of benchmarks. To begin with, when it began generating power in 1997, it was the largest private sector renewable energy project completed in Australia and was the recipient of an Engineering Excellence award in 1996. The project provides base-load power delivered via its own 132 kV transmission network and remains the largest generator of renewable energy in Western Australia, generating over 210 GWh of emission-free energy each year. 

And that's just for starters.

Just the facts

A hydro power station was first envisioned for the Ord River region in 1963 but due to agricultural difficulties in the region, the right conditions didn't show themselves until 30 years later.

When Pacific Hydro came across the project, it seemed a natural fit for a company that specialises in creating energy by natural means.

The entire operation is underpinned by the colossal dam retaining the water of the Ord River. Built in 1972, the dam created Lake Argyle, which boasts some impressive stats of its own. The lake holds up to 18 times the volume of water of Sydney Harbour, has a catchment area of over 46,000 square kilometres, and is the largest body of fresh water in Australia. The lake is regularly refilled by the monsoonal rains that cross the northern part of the country each year and the area is home to abundant wild-life including 25,000 fresh-water crocodiles.

The Ord power system is supported by fully automatic, computer-based control systems, which address power system dynamics under all operating conditions and load demands. That means right now, the power plant is going about its patient and tireless work of helping miners uncovering diamonds nearby, lighting the local schools, and keeping TVs and fridges running in local homes.

To do so, the power plant produces 210 GW hours of electricity per year, which are purchased by Horizon Power and the Argyle Diamond Mine. It's estimated that as many as 40,000 houses use the electricity created by the power station.

Breathing easy

It's a large number, and we know it's an important one. Each year, an estimated 163,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases are abated by generating our energy from the waters of Lake Argyle. Prior to that, 60 million litres of diesel fuel were burned per year to create electricity for the diamond mine and surrounding towns. Sulphur and nitrogen oxide emissions have also been eliminated.

Anyone who has travelled through this remote Kimberly region of Western Australian will know it's where you can find some of Australia's most breathtaking nature. Of course, that placed a huge environmental responsibility on the project; one that we took very seriously.

Treading lightly on the land

Chief among those concerns was protecting the Aboriginal heritage of the area. With the transmission lines crossing the traditional homelands of the Miriuwunga and Gajerronga communities, we designed the lines to have minimal visual and environmental impact. To achieve this, we consulted extensively with the traditional owners to protect areas of ethnographic or archaeological significance, and ensure our infrastructure did the right thing by all stakeholders.

Thanks to the station's operation, the volume of water going down the Ord River remains at its traditional level, maintaining adequate flow for the abundant wildlife that calls the river home. We understand the importance making sure life continues for the region's animals.

Generating more than clean electricity

Take the local tourism industry, for example. People with boats and fishing rods are enjoying the sport and recreational opportunities offered by the lake, while local industries, like the fruit, vegetable, and sugar industries, are also making good use of the regular flow of water it creates.

With the addition of the power station, a polluting diesel power station in the centre of Kununnurra has been turned off and the region runs totally on renewable energy. Power generation costs are the lowest of any regional area of Western Australia.

Indeed, this is one project that is making more than just mining diamonds or turning on a television possible. And it will keep doing so for decades to come.

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