Callide C Cooling Towers Rebuild

The Callide C Cooling Towers Rebuild Project is a major project to ensure the safe return to service of the Callide C Power Station in 2024.

CS Energy owns Callide C in a joint venture with IG Power and the power station is comprised of two generating units - Unit C3 and Unit C4.

We are rebuilding both the Unit C3 and Unit C4 cooling towers following inspections and advice by independent engineering experts (as both towers are of the same design and age). This followed the partial structural collapse of the Unit C3 cooling tower in October 2022.

The rebuild of the Callide C cooling towers is a unique and highly complex project. These are large structures – each tower is 200 metres long, almost six storeys high and nearly half an Olympic pool wide.

CS Energy is working with specialist contractors IWC Australasia with UGL as their major subcontractor. Arnolds is delivering the electrical work, with DB Schenker managing the delivery of materials. Demex was also involved with the demolition of the existing towers.

Image: Water vapour rises from the new C3 cooling tower in early April 2024

Unit C3 cooling tower

The original Callide C3 cooling tower was demolished in mid-2023 and construction of the new tower commenced in the second half of the year.

Approximately 300 people worked on site and a logistics specialist coordinated the movement of more than 1,000 tonnes of freight from all corners of the world.

Construction of the new C3 tower is almost complete and the unit was returned to service on 1 April 2024. 

Unit C4 cooling tower

The original C4 cooling tower was demolished in the second half of 2023. Foundation works are underway and it will be constructed once the C3 cooling tower is completed.

Callide Unit C4 has been offline since the Unit C4 incident in May 2021. Learn more about the Unit C4 incident, investigation and recovery.