A battery is a store of energy it releases as electricity. As we move away from burning fossil fuel, our survival may eventually depend on harnessing natural forces. Think of an avalanche tearing down a mountainside. What awesome power is that. The snowy battery project aims to capture the power in liquid water instead.
Connecting Two Lakes with the Snowy Battery Project
There are two huge lakes called Tantangara, and Talbingo lower down in the Snowy Mountains in south-east New South Wales, Australia. Engineers figure they could generate electricity by letting the water cascade down a tunnel between them. However, the challenge is 17 miles of solid rock intervening.
The snowy battery project has a precedent in the form of Snowy 1, hewn from rock by hand between 1949 and 1974. However, Snowy 2 will be larger and able to supply 10% of Australia’s energy. This work is important because the nation has one of the highest greenhouse gas emissions in the world.
But Will Engineers Overcome the Challenges Facing Snowy 2
“There is no question this is a big engineering challenge,” says Dr Matthew Stocks, research fellow at Australian National University. “Ultimately, you don’t know exactly what the rocks look like between the two reservoirs.” Moreover, critics question whether the huge cost of US$ 4.5 billion represents the best way to harvest renewable energy.
The snowy battery project will generate power when electricity demand is high. And use surplus energy at night to pump water back to the upper lake. However, Bruce Martin of the Victoria Energy Policy Center is skeptical.
“Snowy Hydro 2.0 was a political get-out-of-jail card, played at the public’s expense,” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “This is a project that we can confidently forecast will be a drain on the public purse.” Meanwhile the engineers are chipping away at their project high up in the Snowy Mountains. Their target for first generation is late 2024, or early 2025 at the latest.
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Preview Image: Guthega Ski Resort in Snowy Mountains
