The Victorian Government has declared an energy emergency to allow the Morwell River to be diverted away from the Yallourn coal mine so it can repair a protective wall that is at risk of collapsing.
EnergyAustralia says high water levels resulting from last week’s extreme weather in Victoria had left visible cracks in the Morwell River diversion wall which has stopped production in much of the mine.
The crisis is impacting energy production at the neighbouring Yallourn power plant which is fuelled by brown coal from the mine.
Officials say the emergency wall could breach at any moment and force the Yallourn plant to shut down completely.
The state’s grid operator, Ausnet, has already warned power supplies could be off for weeks in the Dandenong area where the recent storms tore down dozens of trees which brought down power lines.