FAQs

Snowy 2.0 will enable long-duration energy storage essential to the renewables transition.

The pumped hydro expansion of the iconic Snowy Hydroelectric Scheme, Snowy 2.0 is one of the most complex and challenging feats of engineering underway in the world.

Essentially a giant battery, Snowy 2.0 will store excess power from wind and solar and deliver it to homes and businesses across the grid at times it’s needed most.

Snowy 2.0’s 2,200 megawatt (MW) capacity will deliver enough energy to power 3 million homes for a week, equivalent to about 26 million home batteries.

The Australian Energy Market Operator predicts the National Electricity Market (NEM) requires around 649 gigawatt hours (GWh) of dispatchable energy storage to reach net zero by 2050, Snowy 2.0 alone will provide more than half, providing the grid with an incredible 350GWh energy storage.

With a design life of 150 years, Snowy 2.0 will underpin clean energy in Australia for generations to come.

When complete, Snowy 2.0 will become the centrepiece of Snowy Hydro’s unmatched mix of on-demand power stations that provide the power and energy storage needed to keep the lights on in homes and businesses as more clean wind and solar enters the grid.

This will enable a reliable, lowest-cost energy system for Australia’s homes and businesses..

As Australia’s largest battery and storage for renewable energy, Snowy 2.0 will play a lead role in Australia’s energy transition. The future National Electricity Market (NEM) will require a huge amount of storage capacity (far more than just Snowy 2.0), which will be provided from a mix of projects and storage options.

Snowy 2.0’s size and scale (350,000MWh or 160 hours of operation) provide longer-term energy storage that can underpin the stability and reliability of the NEM. Domestic and commercial batteries, small-scale and large-scale hydro projects and demand management will also play a role. Batteries provide storage over short time intervals (several minutes up to a few hours)

When the wind blows and the sun shines, and NEM customer demand is low, spot prices will be low and Snowy Hydro will pump. 

When the wind and solar resource is low, and demand is high, the NEM price will be higher and Snowy Hydro will generate and displace coal-fired electricity in the process. Snowy Hydro is already doing this on a regular basis with its pumped-hydro capabilities at Tumut 3 Power Station.

Snowy 2.0, with its capacity and long-term resource storage, will enable another several thousand megawatts of wind and solar energy into the market. Snowy 2.0 provides the NEM access to critical firm capacity and large-scale storage within a single project.

Developers of wind/solar plants require offtake contracts to make their entry into the NEM feasible, by underpinning their financial viability and firming up their physical output. Snowy Hydro is already firming variable renewable energy and providing the large-scale storage the NEM needs. 

Snowy Hydro has signed offtake contracts for more than 1,800MW with 16 new wind and solar projects.

Yes, as with any form of energy storage, there is an efficiency loss when water is pumped. However, pumping water gives us the ability to absorb energy when it’s not needed, store the water, and release it to generate energy when required.

For example, solar generation is at its peak during the middle of the day, when many people are at work or school. Snowy 2.0 could use this solar energy to pump water so that when the sun sets and people get home, we can generate energy to meet the spike in demand that occurs in the early evening.

For almost 75 years Snowy Hydro has responsibly operated the Snowy Scheme in Kosciuszko National Park (KNP). We are committed to avoiding and minimising potential impacts from Snowy 2.0, as we do for our existing business. The park is our backyard and we want to look after it. 

The total area temporarily impacted by construction is less than 0.1% of KNP and post-construction, the operational footprint of Snowy 2.0 is less than 0.01% of the total size of the park. 

Unavoidable project impacts will be offset and construction areas rehabilitated, in accordance with project approvals.

Snowy Hydro will spend approximately $100 million on KNP’s offsets program, with most funds going directly to NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service to support long-term park conservation and recreation.

No. Snowy 2.0 is a pumped-hydro project. This means it is a closed loop system that effectively recycles water before releasing it downstream. 

More broadly, the Snowy Scheme operates under a strict water licence issued by the NSW Government. 

Snowy 2.0 will not in any way affect Snowy Hydro’s continued compliance with the water licence.

There will be no change to Snowy Hydro’s water release obligations from both the Murray and Tumut developments, or to environmental release obligations. 

This means Snowy 2.0 will not have any impact on downstream water users, irrigators or on environmental flows.

Currently Snowy Hydro is permitted to operate Tantangara Reservoir between the minimum operating level and full supply level. 

This won’t change with Snowy 2.0.

The development of Snowy 2.0 by Snowy Hydro and the development of transmission projects to support the broader development of the network are two different things. 

Transmission is required to connect Snowy 2.0 to the grid, as with any new energy generation project, but that transmission is also connecting renewable energy zones, grid-scale batteries and even a proposed gas power station. 

It is misleading to include the cost of transmission in the cost of a power station.

Other energy projects do not. It is important for transparency and accountability that Snowy 2.0 is held to the same standards as other projects when it comes to how we talk about its cost.

Delivering nationally significant energy infrastructure is not done in isolation; new power stations and variable renewable generation must be connected to the grid in a way that optimises their benefits for energy users and Australia’s renewable transition. 

The completion of major transmission projects like HumeLink, VNI West and Sydney Ring South is necessary to unlock these benefits for the electricity network and the economy. 

Together, these projects and the transmission that connects them are reshaping Australia’s energy landscape and building a more reliable grid to support decarbonisation.

The primary reasons for the increased project cost were: 

• Global cost escalation for equipment, services and people exceeding allowances made at the 2023 contract reset.
• Detailed technical analysis continuing to identify the scale and nature of the project’s design immaturity when the final investment decision was made, driving additional cost.
• Construction complexities contributing to principal contractor Future Generation Joint Venture not meeting productivity targets.
• Cost and planning underperformance by FGJV leading to previous underestimating of the delivery scope.

Snowy 2.0 is one of the most challenging engineering undertakings being carried out in the world. 

Snowy Hydro has taken action to strengthen the projectʼs delivery and cost performance, including introducing a new tunnel boring machine to de-risk challenging geology, instructing FGJV to establish a project control office and embedding independent construction experts in the project to monitor schedule and cost performance. 

However, any mega-project of this scale comes with delivery risks and nothing can be guaranteed on a project of this uniqueness and complexity.

The reassessment process clarified that many of the factors that put pressure on the budget also impacted schedule, the most significant being contractor productivity..

Snowy 2.0 is essential to Australia’s future energy mix. If you take the view of AEMO, which operates the National Electricity Market, the network needs a mix of short duration storage from batteries and long duration storage from pumped hydro. You also need gas generation to ensure reliability during the transition. 

Currently, pumped hydro is the only proven and tested technology to deliver long duration storage. Snowy 2.0’s location between two large existing water bodies and the unique difference in their altitude has unlocked its potential for incredible amounts of energy storage, which is significant on a global scale. 

The value of Snowy 2.0 to Australia’s future energy reliability and security remains compelling, even at the new target cost.

Batteries play an important role in the modern energy mix, but their short-duration storage must be complemented by long-duration storage that only pumped hydro can provide. 

It’s not uncommon to see periods of extended cloudy conditions and low wind. During these times battery energy will be exhausted quickly and pumped hydro will be needed to maintain reliable energy supply.

An independent report by Baringa was recently released which modelled the potential for batteries to replace pumped hydro. 

It showed that during these periods of extended low renewable output, relying on batteries alone would lead to blackouts and higher wholesale electricity prices.

Snowy 2.0 is an essential component of Australia’s transition to a renewable energy system, which is the lowest cost alternative to a system based on increasingly unreliable coal power stations that have now reached or are fast approaching end-of-life and must be replaced. 

Snowy 2.0’s new cost-to-complete doesn’t change that..

Snowy 2.0 is a generational investment, built to operate for 150 years. It will be a national asset, owned by all Australians that, like the original Snowy Scheme, will power Australian homes and businesses far into the future.

Snowy 2.0’s most compelling value comes from its ability to underpin reliable energy supply, boost Australia’s energy sovereignty, enable the decarbonisation of the grid and support Australia’s shift to a lowest-cost renewable energy system.

An independent economic study conducted by GHD on the delivery and operation of Snowy 2.0 found widespread benefits to national and regional economies, including:

Reduces wholesale electricity market costs by more than $7 billion through 2075 by suppressing price spikes.

Adding around $18.3 billion to the Australian economy.

More than 80 per cent of total expenditure spent in Australia, currently supporting more than 5000 direct jobs during peak construction.

Construction activity supports the equivalent of 102,000 full-time job-years nationwide, generating $9 billion in total wages and salaries. 

The contractor has undertaken a rigorous cost reassessment process, overseen by multiple layers of testing and assurance by independent construction experts.

Snowy Hydro has also taken action to strengthen the contractor’s delivery and cost performance, including:

• Directing FGJV to establish a project control office with enhanced data and analytics to drive site productivity and identify emerging risks early.
• Embedding independent infrastructure delivery and cost experts in the project to bolster delivery oversight. 
• Driving changes in FGJV’s leadership on the project, including a new Project Director, responsible for daily cost and schedule performance on the ground, and a broad uplift with more senior, globally experienced megaproject leaders.

Snowy 2.0 is an ambitious national undertaking. It is among the most complex mega-projects in the world. Like the original Snowy Scheme, this project is Australia showing the world it can take on the hardest tasks. 

Snowy 2.0 is designed to operate for 150 years, it is a generational investment in an asset that will be owned by every Australian, benefiting our grandchildren and their grandchildren.

This year we’ve achieved some big milestones:

• The start of decommissioning TBM Lady Eileen Hudson after completing its second tunnel, the 6-kilometre tailrace.
• TBM Florence is almost at the halfway point of its 15-kilometre tunnelling journey (49 per cent completion).
• The start of construction on the underground power station with the first concrete pours.

Overall progress on key workfronts as at September 2026: