The co-owner of Queensland’s biggest coal-fired power station in Gladstone has said it could close the plant in March 2029 – six years earlier than expected.

The power station – one of the least reliable in the national electricity market – is seen as a critical part of the region’s heavy industry, providing power to Rio Tinto’s own aluminium smelter, as well as alumina refineries and LNG and cement plants in the region.

Rio Tinto, the co-owner of Gladstone power station (GPS), said it had notified the Australian Energy Market Operator (Aemo) “of the potential retirement” of Gladstone. BHP blames ‘coal tax’ for job layoffs. But there’s obvious reasons coalmines aren’t as profitable anymore Read more

Aemo’s expected closure year of the power station was 2035.

Rio Tinto said: “No f

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