Origin shares jolt to two-year high on plans to lift power output

Origin shares have surged after it flagged plans to up output from its largest plant in order to capitalise on higher prices.

Eraring Power Station.

Origin Energy shares have jumped to a two-year high after it upped the output from its Eraring coal fired power station to between 15.5 and 16 terra watt hours as it rushes to capitalise on higher wholesale electricity prices.

The increased guidance, up 10 per cent on previous output, has also helped fill a gap left by the closure of the Hazelwood and Northern brown coal-fired power stations in Victoria and South Australia respectively.

Origin (ORG) told and investor day briefing that it had supported the increased output — the largest power station in the country at 2,200MW, with new coal contracts.

“Eraring has never run so hard in response to high wholesale electricity prices,” Origin chief executive Frank Calabria told the briefing in Sydney.

He said Origin had also returned another 250MW of capacity into the market by resuming gas fired power in South Australia.

Origin, said it had also purchased another 41 petajoules of gas for the domestic market from its part-owned Australia-Pacific LNG export facility to ease supply shortfalls and high prices that have sparked fears of a manufacturing shutdown.

At 1pm (AEDT), Origin Energy shares were trading 26 cents, or 3 per cent, higher at $8.85, a two-year high.