Workers have downed tools at Australia’s largest renewable energy project, with tunnel boring machines switched off and drill and blast operations stopped due to safety concerns.
The relationship between site workers and project management hit rock bottom Tuesday night over claims that some refuge chambers, critical for survival in an underground emergency, are inoperable and not maintained to manufacturer specifications.
The Australian Workers Union (AWU) says workers have not been properly trained in using the refuge chambers or in emergency procedures, including evacuations, firefighting, and medical response, as required by the project’s Emergency Response Management Plan.
The plan also mandates regular underground rescue drills, but the union claims no evacuation exercises have been conducted in some project areas for months.
AWU NSW Secretary Tony Callinan has called for urgent intervention, warning that lives are at risk if safety issues remain unaddressed.
“We have been raising safety concerns on this project for years now, someone’s going to get killed if safety issues aren’t addressed immediately,” Callinan said.
“Refuge chambers are crucial for survival if there is an emergency underground; they are meant to be inspected regularly to ensure they work, yet some have been found inoperable.”
“Workers need to be trained how to use the refuge chambers and how to respond in the event of an emergency.”
Union digs up safety concerns
The $12 billion Snowy 2.0 project, located in the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales, is scheduled to be completed in 2030. It involves constructing 27 km of underground tunnels and a new pumped hydro station.
The project aims to boost Australia’s renewable energy storage capacity and help the nation meet its net-zero emissions target by 2050.
However, longstanding safety concerns have led the AWU to write to Federal Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen, NSW Industrial Relations Minister Sophie Cotsis, and project managers requesting urgent meetings.
Health and safety representatives have raised concerns for months, but Callinan says management has ignored them.
“The workforce has decided enough is enough and, out of frustration and genuine concern for their safety, decided they had no option but to stop working underground until their concerns are appropriately addressed,” he said.
“Tunneling is a dangerous industry, and the risks need to be managed; Snowy 2.0 management just can’t seem to get it right; it’s the worst project I have seen in 20 years as an AWU organiser.”
The AWU says no underground work will resume until safety concerns are resolved.
