Snowy 2.0 Main Works

The Snowy 2.0 Main Works Application was approved by the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces on 20 May 2020.

The Main Works involve the development of the underground power station and tunnels linking the existing Tantangara and Talbingo Reservoirs.

The project includes:

• connecting the Talbingo and Tantangara reservoirs with a network of tunnels covering nearly 30 kilometres.
• developing a new underground pumped hydro power station and associated infrastructure to generate up to 2,000 MW of electricity and provide energy storage of up to 350 GWh for the NEM.

Assessment

The department assessed the application for Snowy 2.0’s Main Works, taking into account environmental, social and economic impacts, community and stakeholder submissions and advice from other government agencies.

To help with the assessment process, we:

• welcomed public feedback on the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) during public exhibition in September-November 2019 and received more than 220 submissions during the extended 42 day period.
• held community information sessions in the local area, to assist the community to better understand the assessment process and how to make a submission on the proposal.
• met regularly with key stakeholders.
• worked closely with government agencies, including the Commonwealth, key State agencies (such as the National Parks & Wildlife Service, Environment Protection Authority, NSW Department of Primary Industries and Transport for NSW), and the Snowy Valleys and Snowy Monaro Regional Councils.

Approval

The Minister for Planning and Public Spaces approved the Main Works proposal on 20 May 2020, and the approval was announced by Deputy Premier John Barilaro.

The Commonwealth Minister for the Environment granted approval for the proposal on 29 June 2020. Federal approval is required, in addition to the State planning approval, according to the Australian Government’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).

More information

All documents relating to the application, including the EIS and Response to Submissions report, are available on our Major Projects website.

To find out more about the project, you can:

• visit the Snowy Hydro Website
• contact us via our online form