An additional 20 megawatts (MW) of energy will be installed in the Pilbara by Horizon Power following the State Government's allocation of $43.5 million in the State Budget.
The 20 MW of gas generation to be installed on the North West Interconnected System (NWIS) - the Horizon Power network that provides power to residents and businesses in Port Hedland and Karratha.
Additional capacity has also been secured through the renewal of a contract to purchase electricity from Alinta Energy Ltd in Port Hedland.
These measures will increase the total generation capacity on the NWIS to approximately 160 MW, well above the current maximum demand of 122 MW to meet forecasted increased demand from residential and small businesses in the Pilbara.
Horizon Power Manager Generation Projects Craig Julian explained that the additional generation is needed to support the expected growth in the Pilbara.
"Horizon Power and State Government are committed to ensuring adequate power supplies are available to support this growth and the installation of this additional 20 MW of generation is one way we can achieve that."
The new gas turbine will be located adjacent to the ATCO power station in Karratha which also feeds power into the NWIS for Horizon Power customers.
The generator will be operational from early 2012/13 to meet the peak demand experienced at that time of year in the Pilbara.
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