Hughenden-Biloela power line proposed to connect western Queensland to the national electricity grid

The proposed “clean energy corridor” would connect western Queensland generators to the national grid. (Supplied: RAPAD)

An alliance of rural Queensland councils has announced plans to build a “clean energy corridor” to connect western Queensland to the national power grid.

The proposed high-voltage transmission line would connect the outback town of Barcaldine to towns to the north and east of the state.

It is the most significant economic investment into western Queensland “since the railway line was built,” according to Barcaldine mayor Sean Dillon.

“These investments have been for decades quarantined on the eastern side of the great divide,” he said.

The Central Western Queensland Remote Area Planning and Development (RAPAD) Board today signed a memorandum of understanding with private equity investor VisIR, the founders of the multi-billion-dollar CopperString 2032 project, formerly known as CopperString 2.0.

One end of the 930-kilometre line would link to the CopperString project in Hughenden and the other end to the Callide power station in Biloela.

Missing piece of puzzle

There have been a series of failed renewable energy projects in western Queensland in the past decade which has left some residents sceptical of the merits of renewables in the outback.

Cr Dillon said that was due to a lack of transmission infrastructure which this project would solve.

“It’s a two-piece puzzle. You’ve got to build the transmission first and then the generation can follow,” he said.

The proposed 930-kilometre power line has the capacity to transfer 5.2 gigawatts of power between the western and national power grid.

Mr Dillon said the power line from Lilyvale to Barcaldine that currently services the central west only has a capacity of 132 kilovolts.

With the new transmission line, energy from outback renewable projects like solar and wind farms would be able to contribute to nationwide demand for clean energy and help power residents’ homes.

Cloud-free, sunny skies a drawcard

The number of cloud-free days and the intensity of the sun have been a major drawcards for investment into renewable projects.

This proposed project aims to enable the transfer of 4.2 gigawatts of solar power generation.

Mr Dillon said it would improve local power as well.

“People in western Queensland live with third world power. What we see here in communities like Alpha and Jericho is archaic,” he said.

“It hasn’t been maintained and isn’t relevant to the 21st century’s power usage in a rural setting.”

Minister for Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen Mick de Brenni said the state government was invested in supporting regional Queensland.

“The Palaszczuk government is leading the way in renewable energy and the jobs it protects,” he said.

“We are already supporting a range of regionally-based initiatives including policy and financial support for local governments, local supply chains, as well as the Barcaldine Renewable Energy Zone,” he said.

Why western Queensland?

Simply put, the land is vast and the population is less dense.

Much of it operates as cattle stations, where each property can cover thousands of hectares.

Chief executive of RAPAD, David Arnold, said they had relatively “unfettered access” to the land.

“We are not bound by the sheer numbers of people and the problems in urban areas where so many things go through hoops to be built,” he said.

Mr Arnold said it was too early to say, but the number of jobs created could be in the hundreds.

“So we’re seeing it as a significant potential economic contributor,” he said.

“We’re staking a claim in our region to be part of a larger superpower highway.”

He said the project was still in its “embryonic stage” with RAPAD meeting with the state government this week.

The rural councils will discuss the implementation of the power grid with stakeholders over the coming months.

“If this takes ten years, well, it takes ten years. You’ve got to start with the first step,” Mr Arnold said.

“It’s like eating an elephant, you start with the first bite.”