The Australian government has granted development approval for solar PV developer Lightsource bp’s proposed 450MW Goulburn River Solar Farm in New South Wales, subject to conditions.
The project, which secured approval from the New South Wales government in late August 2024, will cover a 793-hectare site around 28km southwest of Merriwa, 273km northwest of Sydney. It will cost around AU$880 million (US$596 million) to construct fully.
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Plans for the project detail that it will comprise approximately one million bifacial solar PV modules in an east-west single-axis tracking arrangement, with an approximate height of three metres. It will have an operational lifespan of around 40 years and includes plans for a 49MW/392MWh battery energy storage system (BESS).
Lightsource bp will also provide annual contributions to the Upper Hunter Shire Council at the greater of AUS$346 per megawatt installed, or AUS$190,000 through a Voluntary Planning Agreement.
The Federal government approved its Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act on Monday (7 October), with this subject to the developer meeting several conditions.
The conditions ensure that the development does not endanger threatened species and communities. As such, the developer must ensure it does not clear more than 494.43 hectares of Box Gum Woodland, 42.46 hectares of Regent Honeyeater habitat, and 22.49 hectares of Painted Honeyeater habitat.
In similar fashion, earlier this week, the Australian government ruled that the site size for a 350MW solar PV project in Queensland had to shrink to protect endangered local wildlife, including Koalas, Grey Snakes, and Squatter Pigeons.
You can find details of the project site plan below.
It is worth noting that the project is located between the Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) and the Hunter-Central Coast REZ, and will have direct access to the existing electricity transmission network. A 500kV overhead transmission line is located in the south-eastern corner of the site.
Via this link, the green energy produced by the solar PV project will be dispatched to the National Electricity Market (NEM), further contributing to the NSW government’s target to halve emissions by 2030 and Australia’s wider 82% 2030 renewable energy target.
