Verified by The Daily Newcastle editorial teamLast verified: 28 June 2026
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The Hunter Valley will receive $210 million from the federal government's Powering the Regions Just Transition Fund as three coal-fired power stations in the region approach their scheduled closure dates, with the investment targeted at workforce retraining, economic diversification, and community wellbeing programs for the mining towns most exposed to the structural change.
The closures of the Eraring, Bayswater, and Liddell power stations, staggered over the next five years, will directly affect approximately 2,800 workers and thousands more in related supply chains, support services, and the communities that have depended on power station employment for generations. The Just Transition Fund aims to ensure these workers and communities are not left behind as Australia's electricity system transforms.
Federal Minister for the Environment and Water Tanya Plibersek said the Hunter's experience of managed industrial transition was being watched nationally as a model for how coal-dependent regions could navigate the clean energy shift. "There is no sugarcoating the difficulty of what is happening in the Hunter. But a managed, supported transition is far better than an abrupt, unmanaged one," she said.
The fund will support a new retraining program developed in partnership with TAFE NSW and the University of Newcastle, offering former energy sector workers pathways into renewable energy, construction, healthcare, and digital industries. Early conversations with several renewable energy developers have identified a preference for ex-mining and power station workers for operations and maintenance roles, given their existing safety culture and technical aptitude.
Hunter Jobs Alliance, which has been advocating for a just transition framework for six years, called the investment "a down payment" and said ongoing federal engagement over the full transition period would be essential to prevent long-term economic decline in the affected communities.
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