Investor Updates
Southern Hemisphere’s largest solar project underway in Australia
15 August 2013
The largest solar energy project in the Southern Hemisphere is underway in Australia after AGL, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and the NSW Government closed a $450 million deal, sealing the project and adding to Australia’s active clean energy market.
The 155-megawatt project is four times the size of Sydney’s central business district, with a 102MW solar plant at Nyngan in central NSW and a 53MW solar plant at Broken Hill in the state’s far West.
“The Nyngan and Broken Hill solar plants will be the nation’s largest solar projects with the Nyngan plant also being the largest in the Southern Hemisphere,” AGL Managing Director Michael Fraser said.
The solar project will produce a total of 360,000 megawatt hours of electricity a year, enough for 50,000 homes.
A director of Australia’s peak clean energy industry body said the expanded capacity would make solar power more affordable.
"As more and more large-scale renewable projects are built, the costs will come down and consumers will see the full benefits,” Clean Energy Council Policy Director Russell Marsh said.
Clean energy authority Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) will provide $166.7 million and the NSW Government $64.9 million.
First Solar (Australia), the domestic arm of the US-based solar power developer, will provide engineering, procurement and construction services for both projects, using its advanced thin-film photovoltaic modules.
“New solar PV and wind energy projects are already predicted to be cost-competitive with coal and gas by 2020, and landmark projects like this one by AGL and First Energy will help accelerate that process," Mr Marsh said.
Construction of the Nyngan project is expected to start in January 2014, with completion scheduled for mid-2015. Construction of the Broken Hill project will start in July 2014 and end in late 2015.
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