Industrial action is disrupting operations at the Kogan Creek power station, one of Queensland's largest. 

The Mining and Energy Union (MEU) announced protected industrial action starting last Thursday at the 750-megawatt Kogan Creek generator, warning of potential widespread power disruptions in the state. 

MEU Queensland district vice-president Shane Brunker expressed concerns about energy security during the peak summer power generation period due to a lack of government intervention in negotiations with state-owned CS Energy, the plant owner.

“Thursday will be just the start of it,” he said, noting that initial planned action would impact maintenance work and could gradually affect power generation output.

Potential strategies include running the power station at full capacity around the clock or operating at a reduced rate during peak-demand periods, both of which would significantly impact the generator's earnings. 

Kogan Creek supplies 10 per cent of Queensland's power and a significant portion of northern New South Wales.

The dispute revolves around CS Energy's failure to adhere to the Queensland Energy Workers' Charter, according to the union, which seeks job security guarantees and equitable provisions in the enterprise agreement.

CS Energy claimed to have negotiated in good faith, offering generous terms and conditions to employees. 

A company spokesperson has downplayed the risk of widespread power disruption, assuring ongoing electricity generation and safety measures.

While the focus is on Kogan Creek, the issue is part of a broader campaign regarding Queensland's transition to a low-emissions economy, which includes shutting down state-owned coal-fired power stations by 2035.

The disruption at Kogan Creek follows a prolonged outage at the Callide C power station due to an explosion in May 2021 and last year's power grid crisis. 

Despite current adequate power supply, concerns about rolling blackouts in Victoria and South Australia during the upcoming summer persist.