Located near the hamlet of Moorina in far north-eastern Tasmania, the Moorina Hydro-electric power station is the oldest operating electricity generator in Australia.
In 1900, the Pioneer Tin Mining Co. was formed to extract tin (cassiterite) from Tertiary alluvial deposits found in abundance in the far north-east of Tasmania, at the town of Pioneer. At the time there was only one dedicated power station in Tasmania (Duck Reach, near Launceston) which was entirely devoted to street lighting and the general needs of the city of Launceston. In addition, "Water shortages for sluicing and the consumption of 30,000 tonnes of firewood per annum for steam raising had, by 1907, led to the proposal to develop the Moorina Scheme to provide both electricity and sluicing water" (Renewable Energy Generators of Australia (REGA) newsletter, February 2003).[Moorina Hydro P/L source] The station itself is reported by the Tasmanian Hydro-Electric Commission website as having opened in 1906, but REGA reports this as 1907. Construction of the station proceeded during 1908 with commissioning of the 1st machine in March, 1909.[1]
The station is housed in a small-10x15m- corrugated galvanised iron building, which at one point had several out-buildings nearby. Most of these buildings remain including two 1908 houses, a 1939 build engineer's residence and a machine shed. There is limited public access to the area. Water for operations is supplied from a dam across the Frome River 1.6km due south from the powerhouse itself. According to Australian National Committee on Large Dams Inc. publication, Dam Technology in Australia 1850-1999,the concrete-faced rockfill dam was the first of its kind in Australia.[1] From station engineering records the structure is 18 metres high and 197 metres long, following alterations carried out in 1911. From the dam a water race of 2.7km and penstock convey water to the power station itself, where is passes through the machinery inside. Some sources describe the plant as having only one turbine - but this appears to be incorrect. According to REGA, the plant possesses three generating sets, each rated at 325kW, at 50Hz and 6.5kV. From these figures one would assume that the plant has a maximum output of 975kW, however, the Tasmanian Hydro-Electric Commission website states that the plant produces only 600kW, as does the Tasmanian Greens discussion paper 'Power without Purpose - Tasmania's Energy Glut'. the reason for this variation is not known. The ACTUAL nameplate rating of these machines, of which there are 3, is 325kW or 360kVA giving a station total of 975kW or 1080kVA. The decision to fit 50Hz alternators has made integration with the main Tasmanian hydro-electric system much easier. The turbines themselves were built by J.M. Voight (now Voith AG), of Heidenheim, Germany, while the alternators themselves were built by Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft (AEG), of Berlin.
The Pioneer tin mine closed in the mid-1980s, and since then the plant has been owned and operated by Moorina Hydro Pty. Ltd., with a crew of two. The company now sells its electricity to Aurora Energy Pty Ltd.
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