May 14, 2012
Tarong Power Station will inject nearly $1.5 million into the South Burnett community during two overhauls this year, with the first starting last Friday.
Tarong Site manager Dennis Franklin said up to 400 extra contract staff would be employed on overhauls in May and from October to November.
This large temporary workforce would create a boom for local hotels, motels and caravan parks with up to $500,000 to be spent on accommodation.
While specialist components may have to come from interstate or overseas, South Burnett hire companies, hardware and engineering firms would also benefit from the additional business, he said.
“Everyone from equipment hire companies to the local pie shop should benefit from this work by Stanwell, the owner of the Tarong power stations,” Mr Franklin said.
“We use as much local labour as possible in these overhauls to encourage the wages to stay in the community.
“The workers from outside the district will also be buying food, drink and other necessities locally while the overhauls are occurring.
“Stanwell is very pleased to spread the benefits of these major projects to the community – it is all part of our long-term commitment to the region.”
The two overhauls, worth $23 million, will include a mini-overhaul of Unit 4 at Tarong Power Station, which will run for about four weeks from last Friday and will require an extra 60 contract employees.
Later in the year, Unit 1 will be overhauled for two months starting in early October and will require an extra 300 to 350 contract employees.
Stanwell regularly overhauls its electricity generation plant to ensure it is operating safely and efficiently.
