Borumba Pumped Hydro Project - Transmission Connections

Overview

Powerlink has been engaged by Queensland Hydro to develop transmission line corridors to connect the proposed Borumba Pumped Hydro Project to the existing electricity transmission network. 

Due to the potential generation and storage capacity of the Borumba Pumped Hydro Project, new transmission infrastructure will be needed from the proposed pumped hydro facility at Lake Borumba to Woolooga in the north, and Halys in the south-west. 

The Borumba Pumped Hydro Project, located close to Imbil, will be capable of dispatching 2,000MW and storing energy for up to 24 hours. When fully operational, the pumped hydro facility will have the capacity to power up to two million Queensland homes. 

It is a nation-building infrastructure project of high strategic importance to Queensland and the future energy system. It will play a significant role in the State’s renewable energy transformation – long duration storage is critical to ensuring Queenslanders have affordable, reliable and clean energy. 

Status

The Final Corridor Selection Report (CSR) for the Borumba to Halys Transmission Line was released on 28 September 2023.

The Final CSR for the Borumba to Woolooga Transmission Line was released on 30 November 2023.

You can see both Final CSRs on this webpage, along with copies of the Draft CSRs.

Powerlink’s focus will now move to more detailed discussions and engagement with landholders and comprehensive technical studies to refine the corridor.

We extend our sincere thanks and appreciation to the communities we have engaged with throughout this process. The feedback and insights shared directly by landholders, Traditional Owner groups, community members and other stakeholders impacted by this project have been invaluable.

Powerlink is committed to undertaking early and authentic engagement, and listening to our communities and other stakeholders, to better understand their needs and priorities.  

Approach to Final Corridor Selection 

Initial stakeholder engagement regarding the proposed pumped hydro project began in December 2021 and was followed by the release of a study area in mid-2022, when Powerlink commenced investigations into potential corridor options to connect the Pumped Hydro Energy Storage (PHES) facility to the transmission network.  

​As a key component of the transmission network development processes, Powerlink sought community and other stakeholder input on the study area in July and August 2022. Corridor options were then taken to the community for their feedback and input in late 2022 and early 2023. See below the full list of engagement undertaken by Powerlink.  

​Throughout the corridor selection process, Powerlink sought feedback at various stages to help inform the refinement and selection of a final 1km-wide corridor. This included considerations into the physical land, environment and heritage values, social impacts, legislative requirements and technical input from Powerlink in relation to constructability of transmission lines.  

Following finalisation of the 1km-wide corridors, detailed discussions will continue with directly impacted landholders, Traditional Owner groups and other stakeholders, and further analysis and studies will be undertaken. This will include targeted investigations and the development of planning, design and construction considerations, to enable the refinement of the final 1km-wide corridors to a 70m-wide easement alignment.  

The purpose of the Final CSR is to document the overall corridor selection process including early engagement and assessment outcomes as described below:

• consideration of stakeholder input and feedback in identifying key criteria
• development of objectives, criteria and measures to identify and select a corridor option that has the least overall impact from a social, environmental and economic perspective
• selection of the 4km-wide corridor option, with further refinement to a 1km-wide recommended corridor in consideration of the corridor selection objectives
• engagement with landholders, Traditional Owner Groups and other stakeholders to understand land use and any known constraints
• identification of a final 1km-wide corridor for further refinement to a 70m-wide easement alignment. 

Maps  

View the Borumba to Woolooga Final Corridor interactive map 

View the Borumba to Halys Final Corridor interactive map

Community Engagement and Involvement 

Since December 2021, Powerlink has shared information and gathered feedback for the Borumba Pumped Hydro Project transmission connections (regarding both the Borumba to Halys and Borumba to Woolooga transmission lines) via:  

• 44 community information drop-in sessions, attended by more than 2,100 residents
• 5,757 project update emails and 9,057 letters sent to landholders  
• more than 594 digital and hardcopy feedback forms received  
• 1,148 comments received and responded to on our online interactive map  
• phone calls and emails with landholders  
• meetings with local community groups and landholders  
• letterbox drops across the wider community in the South Burnett and Somerset areas  
• briefings with Stakeholder Reference Groups, Traditional Owner groups, state and local government officials, and representatives from a number of state government departments  
• selective site visits with Traditional Owner groups  
• social media channels, and advertisements in local newspapers and other publications, and radio stations
• more than 22,390 visits to this project webpage 

Community Information Sessions 

MAY - JUNE 2023 INFORMATION SESSIONS  

We would like to thank you for your contribution to the Draft Corridor Selection Report (CSR). We sincerely appreciated all of the feedback we’ve received from landholders, the wider community and other stakeholders. 

During this consultation period in May and June 2023, our project team visited Manumbar, Gympie, Kilkivan, Jimna, Nanango, Yarraman and Maidenwell.  

We invited comments and feedback on the recommended corridors until Monday 3 July 2023. Your insightful views and knowledge have helped us in making informed decisions. 

NOVEMBER 2022 – FEBRUARY 2023 INFORMATION SESSIONS 

Thank you to landholders, the community and other stakeholders for taking the time to attend our community information drop-in sessions from November 2022 until early February 2023. 

In that time, our project team visited Kilkivan, Woolooga, Imbil, Manumbar, Widgee, Amamoor, Kandanga, Gympie, Jimna, Yarraman, Nanango, Linville, Blackbutt, Kilcoy, Maidenwell, Moore and Kumbia to gather information from the community. 

We appreciated the feedback and insights you shared with us during these sessions. We invited comments and feedback on the corridor options until Friday 31 March 2023. Your input has been valuable in helping us identify the corridors that offer the least overall impact across environmental, social and economic factors. 

We share information about our upcoming engagement activities in a number of ways so that we can ensure we get your feedback and input.  This includes using local Facebook community groups, posters and flyers on noticeboards, radio and newspaper advertisements, local community newsletters and local council channels, as well as an existing contact database of community members who’ve registered their interest to receive our updates at previous forums. 

If you have any suggestions of other channels for sharing information about upcoming engagement activities, please email us at [email protected]. 

Additionally, we welcome the opportunity to meet with you in person to discuss and listen to your feedback at any time. Please contact us by phone, email or leave your comments on our online feedback form and interactive map above.