Poatina Power Station
| Company type | Hydroelectric power station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Energy |
| Founded | 1964 |
| Headquarters | Poatina, Tasmania , Australia |
| Products | Electricity generation |
| Owner | Hydro Tasmania |
The Poatina Power Station is a traditional hydroelectric facility situated in the Central Highlands region of Tasmania, Australia. It sits along the Great Lake and South Esk River and is managed and owned by Hydro Tasmania.
Technical details
Located within Tasmania's northern Midlands area, Poatina harnesses water from the Great Lake and South Esk catchment by utilizing a 900-meter elevation drop from the Great Western Tiers down to Norfolk Plains. Water is channeled through a tunnel from Great Lake to the edge of the tiers, then descends through a penstock that enters an underground chamber near the power station. The facility itself is positioned 150 meters below ground inside a large man-made cavern—the name "Poatina" translates to "cavern" in the Palawa kani language. The headrace tunnel and penstocks were excavated through mudstone using a Robbins Mole tunneling machine. After passing through the turbines, water is discharged via a 4-kilometer tailrace tunnel, flowing into the Macquarie River through Brumbies Rivulet.
Commissioned in 1964, Poatina was developed to succeed the Waddamana and Shannon power stations. The nearby settlement of Poatina, constructed to support the station’s development, is located on a plateau roughly 3.5 kilometers from the underground facility.
The station comprises six vertical shaft generators: five Boving Pelton turbines each rated at 51.6 MW—with three units upgraded by Andritz—and one Fuji Pelton turbine rated at 54.5 MW, yielding a combined capacity of 300 MW. It generates approximately 1,255 GWh annually. Electricity generated is routed through underground circuit breakers to transformers housed in the switchyard before being integrated into TasNetworks' grid at Palmerston Substation, situated 4 kilometers east of the station. Plans are underway to install two grid battery systems at Palmerston by 2027, offering a total storage capacity of 380 MW / 860 MWh to bolster energy storage infrastructure.
2016 Tasmanian energy crisis
During early 2016, Poatina’s generation dropped to merely 20% of its full capacity as Tasmania faced persistent water shortages affecting its hydroelectric network. This reduction significantly impacted Hydro Tasmania's electricity supply and raised concerns about potential power outages across the state.