Tasmania Hydro has announced that its heritage-rich Tarraleah Estate will once again be a bustling workers’ village, housing employees working on the development of the 90 MW Tarraleah Hydroelectric Project. Tarraleah, on the river Nive, is part of the Upper Derwent scheme.
The first three turbine-generator units were commissioned in 1938 and the last three from 1943 to 1951. Nearly a century after the village was built, Tasmania Hydro announced it was purchasing the site to support the Nation’s Battery workforce and development plans to increase the project’s capacity and generate about 30 percent more power.
Renovated village
Built in the 1930s to house workers at the original Tarraleah hydroelectric plant, the village was for decades an operational center for Tasmania Hydro, housing individuals and families from the civil maintenance and power branches. In recent years, the Central Highlands Village has operated as a private commercial tourism enterprise.
The 97-hectare village of Tarraleah has been renovated in recent years and can currently accommodate up to 100 people, with facilities such as a hall, restaurant, café and recreational facilities. The site also has cleared land for the establishment of maintenance, storage and handling facilities to support the future workforce.
Federal Government Assistance
According to Brooksbank, the Village of Tarraleah will continue to offer lodging facilities to the traveling public until full capacity is needed for the construction workforce. The $11.2 million purchase is currently in the settlement period. In its 2021-22 annual report, Tasmania Hydro reported that a highlight was the federal government’s funding commitment to advance reimagining activities at the Tarraleah Hydroelectric Project as part of the Nation’s Battery initiative.
Significant improvements to the Tarraleah scheme are underway, involving approximately 100 full-time positions. Tasmania Hydro is assessing the commercial viability of restructuring the Tarraleah project, with a final investment decision expected in mid-2024. If the full renovation does not materialize, the village will be used to house workers doing the necessary renovation work on the project.
