The Queensland government has taken a significant step toward delivering the state’s first new gas-fired power station in more than a decade, through a 10-year gas supply agreement between CS Energy and Senex Energy.
Under the deal, natural gas from Senex’s Atlas development in the Surat Basin will fuel the proposed Brigalow Peaking Power Plant near Chinchilla in the Western Downs.
From 2027, Senex will supply up to 58.4 petajoules of natural gas to support the 400-megawatt power facility, which will be capable of reaching full output within five minutes to provide reliable electricity for more than 150,000 Queensland homes during periods of peak demand.
The agreement forms part of the state government’s Energy Roadmap, outlining a strategy to deliver affordable, reliable and sustainable power for households, businesses and industry across Queensland.
The government said it was rebuilding Queensland’s energy future and strengthening grid reliability as renewables continue to expand.
Treasurer and Energy Minister David Janetzki said gas-powered generation was an essential pillar of its approach.
“This is part of our plan to improve the energy assets we have while we build what we need for the future,” Minister Janetzki said.
“We’re taking an approach based on economics and engineering, not ideology.”
Janetzki said the Roadmap outlined a balanced approach that extends the life of existing coal generators while increasing low-cost renewable generation from wind and solar, backed by new dispatchable options such as gas turbines, pumped hydro and battery storage.
He said new gas capacity was essential across all market scenarios to help stabilise the grid through the transition.
The state government has committed $479 million in the 2025–26 State Budget for CS Energy to develop the Brigalow facility, as part of its plan to strengthen supply while placing downward pressure on energy prices, optimising taxpayer-funded investment and advancing private sector participation in new generation.
CS Energy CEO Brian Gillespie said the Brigalow Peaking Power Plant would be located adjacent to the company’s Kogan Creek Power Station and near the Chinchilla Battery.
“With its ability to perform multiple start and stop cycles per day, the Brigalow Peaking Power Plant will be a reliable source of fast power when needed and produce significantly less emissions than electricity produced from coal,” Gillespie said.
Senex Energy CEO Darren Stevenson said the company was proud to invest more than $1 billion in the Western Downs to help ensure reliable supply for homes and businesses.
“With energy shortfalls forecast for the east coast in coming years, this agreement will add critical new supply to the domestic market when it’s needed most,” Stevenson said.
In addition to the Brigalow project, government owned corporations Stanwell and CleanCo are progressing studies into new gas-fired developments at Gatton and Swanbank.
Under current forecasts, Queensland’s gas-fired generation capacity is expected to grow from about 4.1 gigawatts by 2030 to between 6.1 and 8.3 gigawatts by 2035.
