Australia's newest gas peaking plant at Kurri Kurri is on track to produce its first power in December.
About 600 employees are presently working on the site of the $950 million Hunter Power Project as it enters the final phase of construction.
The project, announced by the former Coalition government in 2020, was originally due to be open in time to compensate for the loss of Liddell Power Station last year.
However sustained wet weather and cost blow-outs have delayed the project.
Snowy Hydro chief executive Dennis Barnes said the focus of the next few months would be the handover of the control and fuel systems and a water treatment plant prior to the commencement of testing.
"We need to connect gas turbine number one to all of those control systems. By mid-December we will introduce fuel to the plant and start to synchronise it to the grid," Mr Barnes said during a site visit on Tuesday.
The gas-fired power station will have a capacity of up to 750 megawatts, with 660 megawatts supplied to the grid initially.
While the plant will be capable of generating a limited amount of power in December, testing and commissioning is not expected to be completed until early next year.
"We won't have full on-demand generation in December but in an extreme weather event during summer we will be able to stop construction and move into operation mode temporarily," Mr Barnes said.
It was initially expected the plant would run on diesel for six months while a 21-kilometre gas lateral between Killingworth and Kurri was completed. However, it is now expected the lateral will be connected to the plant in February.
The plant's turbines will be capable of running on a blend of 15 per cent hydrogen from the commencement of operations, however, this can be increased to 30 per cent with some modification.
While the plant will be 'hydrogen ready' Mr Barnes said the scope of the construction works did not include the production of hydrogen.
"We are not involved in that side of it. We see ourselves as a user of hydrogen, not a producer," he said.
Construction of the Hunter Power Project at Kurri has created 600 direct jobs and provided skill development opportunities in high-demand trades.
The number of apprentices on site are also rising, with Snowy Hydro working with principal contractor UGL to provide an additional 12 apprenticeship positions in June.
It included three female and two First Nations apprentices.
The positions include a boilermaker, nine electricians, and two mechanical fitters.
Mr Barnes said the jobs boost would continue long after construction of the $950 million project was completed.
"We are proud of our contribution to the construction, engineering, and infrastructure sector here in the Hunter, especially given the current tradespeople shortages in Australia," he said.
