Power lines take electricity from the West Gippsland power stations

Morwell
Important brown coal industrial city in the heart of West Gippsland.
Morwell, 148 km east of Melbourne via the Princes Highway and 80 metres above sea level, is situated in Victoria's energy centre, the Latrobe Valley. In spite of its English-sounding name, the word 'morwell' is thought to derive from an Aboriginal word that is thought to mean 'woolly possum'.

The Morwell River was reached by Paul Strzelecki in 1840 and two runs, Haslewood and Maryville, were taken up soon after. Maryville, situated at a stopping point on the old coach road, became a pastoral centre for the region. A track from Lang Lang was cut as a cattle route through the area c.1860-62 and the village, known as Maryvale until 1888, was founded in 1861 and developed as a supply centre for the Tanjil and Walhalla goldfields. The town site was surveyed in 1876 and lots were sold two years later. Development was enhanced by the arrival of the railway. Initially the rail line came from Sale in 1877 and it was extended to Melbourne in 1879.

No. 21 Bucket Wheel Dredger at PowerWorks

Although dairying, timber and agriculture were the lifeblood of the town in the nineteenth century, brown coal was discovered by a prospector as early as 1873. The Great Morwell Coal Mine Company commenced mining and opened a briquette plant in 1889 but it closed in 1894. However, an open-cut mine reopened in the area in 1916 and supplied the fuel for the State Electricity Commission's (SEC) Yallourn power station, which opened in 1924, and for a briquette factory which opened in the early 1920s. The Maryvale Pulp and Paper Mill was established to the north of the town in 1939. Morwell's brown coal also supplied Melbourne with gas between 1956 and 1969, until it was supplanted by offshore natural gas. Poet Chris Wallace-Crabbe worked briefly at the mine in the mid-fifties.

Morwell Power Station was built between 1958 and 1962 with a new briquette plant opening in 1960. Hazelwood Power Station commenced operations in 1971 and the town of Churchill was built to the south to accommodate the expanded workforce.

Things to see:  

PowerWorks Visitors Centre
Excellent coal and power museum with interesting pieces of old mining equipment set in the heart of the open cut mining area. There are good views of the open-cut mining operation. The main feature is the huge No. 21 Wheel Dredger which was the first of its type to operate in the Morwell mine and was originally used to remove the overburden. The sign records: 'The postwar years brought about radical change to mining methods and the use of this kind of bucketwheel technology is now commonly used throughout the Australian mining industry.' Coal mine and Power Station tours are conducted daily at 11.00 a.m. and 2.00 p.m. Contact (03) 5135 3415.

Hazelwood Mine
The mine has a surface area of three square kilometres which is constantly hosed down in order to settle potentially explosive coal dust and inhibit oxidation. The water is pumped from reservoirs of artesian water below the surface. Five dredges operate at the coal face, extracting 19 million tonnes of brown coal each year. The coal is then carried along huge conveyor belts to the power stations.

Hazelwood Power Station
The Hazelwood Power Station has a capacity of 1600 megawatts, it requires 160 million litres of cooling water which is supplied by an artificial lake that is also used for boating and water sports. See entry on Churchill. The Hazelwood Power Station is Victoria's second largest power generator.

Jeeralang Power Station
Further south, Jeeralang Power Station, opened in 1971, is controlled from Morwell and used during peak consumption periods, as its gas turbines can reach full capacity in twelve minutes, as opposed to the 5-8 hours it takes for the coal-driven plants to reach their peak.

Energy Brix Australia
This plant is Australia's largest co-generation manufacturing complex producing both electricity and the famous brown coal briquettes. The heat from the generating turbines is used to dry the brown coal used for the briquettes.

Latrobe Valley Regional Arts Centre
The Latrobe Valley Arts Centre is located in Commercial Road which runs south of the railway line. It has a permanent collection of Australian paintings, prints, ceramics, glass and sculpture and often incorporates visiting exhibitions.

Morwell National Park
16 km south of the town is Morwell National Park a flora and fauna reserve of Tasmanian blue, mountain grey and manna gum, messmate, tree ferns and orchids, including the rare butterfly orchid. Bushwalking tracks are signposted. Further south is the Tarra Bulga National Park.

	Motels
	Del Spana Motor Inn Cnr Church & Buckley Sts Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 4155 Rating: ***
	Farnham Court Motel Princes Hwy Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 51 34 6544 Rating: ***
	Hazelwood Motor Inn 259 Princes Hwy Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 4222 Rating: ***
	Mid Valley Motel 14 Chickerell St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5133 7155 Rating: **
	Morwell East Motel 503 Princes Hwy Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 3288 Rating: *
	Morwell Southside Motel 7 Maryvale Cres. Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 8266 Rating: ***
	Parkside Motel 245 Princes Hwy P.O. Box 9 Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 3366 Rating: ***
	Coal Valley Motor Inn 141 Princes Hwy Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 6211 Rating: ***
	Cedar Lodge Motor Inn 1 Maryvale Cres. P.O. Box 835 Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 5877 Rating: ***
	Hotels
	Merton Rush Hotel Cnr Princes Dve & Collins St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 2633
	Morwell Hotel/Motel Princes Dve Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 1355
	Top Pub Princes Dve Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 1355
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Eden Park Bed & Breakfast Cnr Wilkan Dve & Loriel Court Hazelwood North 3840 Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5166 1398 Rating: ***
	Restaurants
	Cedar Lodge Motor Inn Maryvale Cres. Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 5877
	Don Louie's Pizzeria Buckley St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 2327
	Dragon Palace Restaurant Princes Hwy Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5133 7488
	Farnham Court Motel And Restaurant Cnr Princes & Monash Way Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 6544
	Gaztronomy Cafe & Restaurant Church St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 2913
	Hazelwood Motor Inn Princes Dve Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 4222
	Joes Pizzeria Hoyle St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 8998
	Maharajah Indian Restaurant Buckley St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5133 7499
	Morwell Pizza Restaurant Buckley St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 1513
	Morwell R.S.L. Club Restaurant Elgin St Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 2455
	The Dragon's Pearl Restaurant Cnr Hollie Dve & Princes Hwy Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5134 8677
	Cafés
	Tuscany Cafe & Pizza Princes Hwy Morwell VIC 3840 Telephone: (03) 5133 8029