POWERING THE UPPER MURRAY’S ENERGY FUTURE
PUMPED HYDRO IN THE UPPER MURRAY
What is Upper Murray Pumped Hydro?
The Upper Murray Pumped Hydro is a proposed large scale energy storage facility located at Berringama (VIC). Pumped Hydro Energy Storage is a mature technology used for storing large quantities of energy by pumping water uphill and storing it there for when it is needed.
Built through the Local Development Strategy process* and developed with strong experts’ input, the Proposal’s purpose and objective is to:
Provide large scale, long duration energy storage to support renewable energy.
Offer highly reliable electricity for the entire Upper Murray by connecting the region to the transmission network
Support grid stability and renewable energy goals of state and federal governments
Provide significant jobs during construction and ongoing operations.
Capable of supplying 120,000 homes for more than 8 hours, its potential is a game changer for the region’s economy.
*cf Innovation Upper Murray project.
Read the brochure:
About Innovation Upper Murray and the Pumped Hydro opportunity
The Pumped Hydro opportunity builds on the UMI-led Upper Murray Energy Resilience and Reliability Project (UMERRP) developed in 2020 to embed a more resilient, reliable and low emissions electricity system for the region. While its primary focus was on implementing a series of microgrids across the region to enable self-sufficiency in energy generation, storage and distribution, the potential of Pumped Hydro in the Upper Murray was also identified.
The opportunity was reviewed as part of “Innovation Upper Murray”, a community project supported by the Victorian Government, which identified assets and resources available in the region to support economic innovation. Read here for more details.
Options for pumped hydro were identified, including one in Berringama for a possible big investment and economic project. The Innovation Working Group in charge of this opportunity, undertook a due diligence approach for the Berringama site, to ascertain its actual competitive advantage, and to lay out a detailed step-by-step approach that breaks down the scope, required government structure and investment for each step of feasibility phase.
