AGL on Torrens Island

75 hectares

Our Torrens Island landholding is 75 hectares.

150 people

Around 150 employees and contractors keep the different AGL assets running at Torrens Island.

More than 1000 MW

AGL's Torrens Island assets have a capacity of more than 1,000 MW.

Our assets

AGL Torrens includes older assets, such as the now-retired Torrens A Station, and Torrens B Station, which is scheduled for closure in 2026. In recent years AGL has also invested $475 million in major new projects on Torrens Island, including the 210 MW Barker Inlet Power Station, commissioned in 2019, and the 250 MW Torrens Island battery, which commenced operation in 2023. These assets provide crucial firming capability and system security to the South Australian grid.

Operational

Torrens Island Power Station B

Torrens Island Power Station B is an open cycle steam turbine gas-fired power station, comprised of four 200 MW generating units. One of the units is mothballed, meaning the current total capacity of the plant is 600 MW.

Construction on ‘B’ Station was completed in 1976, making it one of South Australia’s oldest operating power stations. In November 2022 AGL announced it will close the Torrens Island ‘B’ Power Station on 30 June 2026, following the mothballing of one of its four units, unit B1, in 2021. 

This decision followed careful modelling of current and predicted future market conditions and extensive consultation with stakeholders, including the South Australian Government. 

Decommissioned

Torrens Island Power Station A

AGL began progressively closing Torrens Island ‘A’ Station in September 2020, with two units closing at that time. The third unit closed in September 2021, and the final unit closed in September 2022 after 55 years of service. Over this period A Station supplied approximately 200 million MWh of energy to the South Australian market.

The decommissioning and demolition process is underway with the assistance of an experienced local demolition contractor and includes ‘make safe’ work such as the removal of all liquids, gases and electrical hazards from the plant, hazardous materials (asbestos) removal, and eventual demolition.

Torrens A Decommissioning Timeline

September 2022 to mid 2023

Closure of final unit

Start of make safe work

Early 2023 to early 2024

Hazardous material removal

Early 2024 to late 2025

Demolition

Early 2026

Industrial Energy Hub site redevelopment

Barker Inlet Power Station

The 210 MW Barker Inlet Power Station comprises 12 reciprocating engines capable of generating approximately 18 MW of output each.

The engines operate at high efficiency and with a low heat rate compared to other forms of fast-start plants. The station is capable of operating at full capacity within five minutes, providing a rapid response to changes in renewable generation supply. As the state increases its renewable energy generation, plant like Barker Inlet are an important part of the energy mix.

In addition to its high level of efficiency, assets like Barker Inlet that only operate at peak times produce significantly less emissions compared to older power stations that were designed to generate for long periods each day.

Torrens Island Battery

AGL owns and operates the 250 MW / 250 MWh Torrens Island grid-scale battery.

The Torrens Island Battery was commissioned in mid-2023 following a construction period of just 18 months. At the time it was the largest battery in South Australia and the second-largest in Australia.

The Torrens Island Battery provides enough electricity to power approximately 75,000 South Australian homes for one hour – with the option to utilised available land to extend the duration to four hours in the future when the market is ready.

The Torrens Island Battery is a great example of the energy transition underway at AGL Torrens. It was constructed on land previously occupied by large, decommissioned oil tanks and connects to the grid via a repurposed connection point that was no longer required following the closer of Torrens A Station.