OMPS Pty Ltd is developing the Oven Mountain Pumped Hydro Energy Storage project.

Located off-river and on private land in the Armidale Regional LGA (near the Kempsey Shire LGA), the scheme will provide 600 megawatts of electricity generating capacity and up to 12 hours of energy storage.

The project will include upper and lower water reservoirs constructed on an ephemeral tributary of the Macleay River, near Georges Junction, and will operate as a closed-loop circuit.
An underground power station will be connected to the reservoirs by the power waterways or tunnels.

Water access from the Macleay River is required for an initial, one-off fill of the reservoirs and minimal top-up will be required thereafter.

Hydroelectricity will be generated when water is transferred through the underground tunnels from the upper reservoir, through turbines in the underground power station, and transferred to the lower reservoir.

Water will be pumped back to the upper reservoir so it can be used again.

The project will connect at or near the Armidale substation on TransGrid’s high voltage transmission backbone which extends from the QLD-NSW interconnector down to the Hunter Valley.

The Secretary of the DPE has issued his environmental assessment requirements and the proponent is now preparing its environmental impact statement.

In terms of the strategic context, most coal generators in NSW are set to retire by 2043.

This project is strategically planned to address the pending retirement of NSW coal generators and will act to reduce the risk of emerging energy reliability gaps, as noted in the NSW Electricity Strategy.

We are actively working with developers and operators looking to develop renewable energy projects across regional NSW.