Snowy Hydro extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends and workmates of a man involved in a single vehicle crash on the Snowy Mountains Highway today.

NSW Police has confirmed that the driver of the vehicle, a Snowy 2.0 project truck, did not survive the accident.

Snowy Hydro CEO Dennis Barnes said the incident was incredibly distressing. “This is a tragic event and we are supporting our Snowy 2.0 Principal Contractor, Future Generation Joint Venture (FGJV), our teams and all those impacted in the community at this very sad and difficult time.”

The welfare of Snowy 2.0 workers is our immediate priority and project operations have ceased until the night shift on Tuesday 25 April.

Snowy Hydro welcomes the announcement by Webuild that it has reached an agreement with Clough Limited administrators to acquire Clough’s share of the Snowy 2.0 project contract and its related workforce.

Our priority remains ensuring the wellbeing and continuity of Clough’s workers on the project and the smooth progress of Snowy 2.0 construction.

We will continue to work closely with Webuild and the administrators throughout the acquisition process.    

Paul Broad, Managing Director and CEO of Snowy Hydro, has offered his resignation.

For more than 70 years Snowy Hydro’s success has been founded on strong and stable leadership. Paul Broad is no exception to that rule.

Since 2013, Paul has led organisational expansion and innovation, transforming Snowy Hydro into a dynamic and integrated energy business. 

Externally Paul is best known by the Australian public for his leadership on Snowy 2.0 and leading Snowy Hydro’s expansion into retail and renewable energy. 

Snowy 2.0 is a nation-defining and world-leading infrastructure project. It will underpin the transition to a decarbonised National Electricity Market and now employs more than 2,000 people, generating huge economic uplift in the Snowy Mountains. 

Under Paul’s leadership, the first Snowy Hydro renewable energy procurement program began in 2018 and has grown to encompass 12 contracts with wind and solar projects totalling 1.3 gigawatts of energy generation. 

For the local community and Snowy Hydro team, Paul will remain best-known for his extraordinary leadership during incredibly challenging periods, including the 2019/2020 bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Paul’s firm commitment to the safety, health and well-being of the Snowy Hydro family will remain a cornerstone of his legacy. 

The Snowy Board will now commence a process to identify new leadership. Roger Whitby, Chief Operating Officer, will lead the organisation on an interim basis, with support from Paul to facilitate a smooth transition. 

As the energy crisis in the National Electricity Market (NEM) continues to unfold, Snowy Hydro is being called on more than ever to keep the lights on and prices down. Snowy’s role as the NEM’s ‘insurance policy’, providing on-demand energy generation during the crisis, has significantly impacted our business.

CEO and Managing Director Paul Broad said Snowy Hydro strongly rejected commentary suggesting it is to blame for recent high prices in the NEM.

“These comments misunderstand the cause of the energy crisis, as well as Snowy Hydro and the nature of its generation assets,” he said.

Snowy Hydro is a relatively small supplier of energy owing to the fact that its principal source of fuel (water) is limited. In most years Snowy Hydro supplies between 2-4% of the total energy generated in the NEM, operating at critical times of peak demand and when there are unplanned baseload outages. 

The current crisis has arisen due to shortfalls from suppliers of bulk energy, including coal, wind and solar. To help manage this shortfall, Snowy Hydro has operated its assets at record levels, effectively as a baseload generator. 

“To blame high prices on Snowy Hydro for stepping into the void left by bulk energy providers is absurd,” Mr Broad said.

“Were it not for the actions of Snowy, prices would have been significantly higher. Our teams have worked tirelessly and closely with AEMO, the market operator, throughout this challenging period.

“In May this year, generation from the Snowy Scheme was almost double the previous monthly record. This was essential for maintaining security of supply in the NEM, but it is not sustainable. 

“Snowy’s ability to operate in this manner is constrained by its fuel scarcity – we don’t have enough water to manage the ‘energy gap’ from other generators for extended periods,” Mr Broad said.

Snowy Hydro’s water resources must be carefully allocated to the highest value periods in order to keep the lights on. In other words, hydro generation has a high opportunity cost.

It is wrong to suggest that high prices could have been avoided, or that Snowy Hydro should have offered its generation at lower prices. Doing so would have caused our hydro assets to be dispatched ahead of other forms of generation with a cheaper cost of fuel. Not only would this not have made economic sense, it would have left the company unable to respond to critical demand peaks this winter and summer, further increasing the risk of blackouts.

The implication that Snowy Hydro enjoyed a financial windfall as a consequence of the crisis is also inaccurate. Most energy dispatched in the NEM is pre-sold to customers under short or long-term contracts. This is essential for stabilising the cash flow of generators and retailers and is part of the market design. It also means that a narrow focus on price outcomes in the NEM reveals little about generator profitability. 

The steps taken by Snowy Hydro to help keep the lights on – depleting its reserves of available water – have in fact been detrimental to the company’s financial and risk position. Snowy Hydro rejects any suggestion it has been ‘profiteering’ from the crisis, or has in any way exacerbated it. 
Snowy Hydro will remain focused on ensuring security of supply for the NEM during this challenging period.

Snowy Hydro today welcomed the Australian Energy Regulator’s principles to protect customers and small businesses facing financial hardship resulting from COVID-19.

Snowy Hydro’s CEO, Paul Broad said through its retail brands Red Energy and Lumo Energy, is continuing to lead the industry on assisting customers experiencing financial hardship.

“We have always put our customers first.  Last week we introduced a range of protective measures, similar to our recent response to bushfires and the ongoing drought. These included: 

• Since 20 March 2020, all disconnections for customer and small business debt have ceased. 
• 300 customer solutions consultants are taking calls and additional resourcing has been identified to support the customer care team who deal with customers experiencing financial difficulty.
• As per current policies of the Retail businesses, there will be no interest charged on debt.
• Both Red Energy and Lumo Energy websites and digital channels have been updated to emphasise that customers impacted by COVID-19 should call us and that customer assistance is available. 

“Red and Lumo’s customer solutions team has already seen a significant increase in calls from customers reporting job losses and seeking assistance.  We have deployed extra staff, many working overtime to cope with the demand”.  

“More broadly as an essential services provider we are well prepared to deal with COVID-19. Snowy Hydro is operating at full capacity and Snowy 2.0 is continuing as planned.

“Our retail business is committed to continuing to provide customers with clear and regular communication during this incredibly challenging time,” Mr Broad said.