Kiewa Hydroelectric Scheme

The scheme is situated in the Australian Alps in north-eastern Victoria about 350 kilometres (220 miles) from Melbourne and is wholly owned by AGL Energy.

The SECV bought out the VHEC soon after, and in 1923 a series of technical investigations was undertaken into characteristics of rain and snowfall in the Australian Alps.

It was found that local snow was more dense and soggier than that in Europe, and formed weighty blocks, but no further works were carried out by the SECV.

The railhead for materials was moved to Bandiana, and the Kiewa Valley Highway was sealed and realigned for 50 miles (80 km) to Mount Beauty.

With fears of a new world war and a huge demand for electric power, by June 1951 works had reached full momentum, and the anticipated commissioning date of 1956 was considered achievable.

[9] Some in the SECV believed an equivalent quantity of power could be generated more cheaply from other sources, but abandonment was impossible in light of the need for additional capacity quickly.

The Victorian State Government provided its own funds to keep the scheme alive,[9] but 1,500 men were still sacked on 27 September 1951,[8] which slowed work to a snail's pace.

[9] With the privatisation of the State Electricity Commission of Victoria in the 1990s, the scheme passed to Southern Hydro, then acquired by AGL Energy in 2005.

[11] However, due to environmental concerns the design was altered so that the McKay discharge would feed into the Bogong tunnel, leaving the river between them to run naturally.

The main reservoir of the scheme is the Rocky Valley Dam, which has a capacity of 28 billion litres and is situated at 1,600 metres above sea level.