A business case says a second power line between the Australian states of Tasmania and Victoria, across the Bass Strait is feasible. The project, named Marinus Link, would have a capacity of 1,500 MW, built in two separate HVDC cables of 750 MW each, and would run from north west Tasmania near Burnie, where large renewable electricity generation and storage capacity are under development, to the Latrobe Valley in Victoria. Its estimated cost reaches AUS3.5bn (US$2.4bn).
Released by Tasmanian Government State-owned electric provider TasNetworks, the feasibility study and business case assessment has been funded to the tune of AUS20m (US$13.7m) by the Government of Australia and the State Government of State of Tasmania. It also received AUS10m (US$6.8m) from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
TasNetworks will now begin the design and approvals phase for Project Marinus, for which the Australian Government has committed AUS56m (US$38.3m). At present, Tasmania can only export 500 MW as it is limited by the capacity of the existing interconnector Bass Link.