NEW PULVERIZED FUEL MILL UP AND RUNNING AT YALLOURN POWER STATION

The following information was released by EnergyAustralia:

EnergyAustralia has commissioned a new Pulverized Fuel Mill for Unit 1 at its Yallourn Power Station following two years of assessment and engineering works following the catastrophic failure of the mill in March 2021.

The mill's return to service complements a $400 million investment by EnergyAustralia at the Yallourn Power Station, over the next two years, to underpin improved asset reliability, performance, and safety ahead of the station's planned closure in mid-2028.

EnergyAustralia Head of Yallourn Greg McIntyre said: "We are incredibly proud of the hard work of many people at Yallourn to have this mill safely back in service. This project represents two years of diligent work by the team, to ensure we have a much safer and reliable plant."

In March 2021, the existing pulverised fuel mill failed, leading to a fire on site that was quickly brought under control. Importantly, there were no injuries, and all team members remained safe, and investigations were completed without interruption to electricity supply from Yallourn. A thorough investigation was undertaken to determine the cause of the failure, a Mill Rectification Program involving replacement of bolts on other mills and a project to rebuild the mill.

"There has been a great commissioning effort to ensure the new mill, was brought back into service in safe and reliable manner."

"This is a very proud moment and is a great example of what we can achieve when we come together, in the face of a massive challenge."

Note to editor: Yallourn has 32 pulverising fuel mills, which process 2,500 tonnes of coal per day, to ensure efficient combustion in the power station's boilers.