Risen Energy has announced the acquisition of the Yarranlea Solar Farm in Queensland.
The project, located approximately 170km west of Brisbane near Toowoomba, has a total capacity of 121MW (~30,1 MW of firm capacity) solar power. Risen Energy will now take the project from detailed engineering design to construction, commissioning and thereafter own and operate the solar farm.
Once completed, the Yarranlea Solar Farm power station will connect to the National Electricity Market (NEM) via the nearby Yarranlea zone substation. It is projected to produce 264GWh (~24.9% of load factor) each year, enough to power 52,800 South East Queensland households.
Risen Energy project development and investment director John Zhong said due to wholesale electricity markets, the company will fund 100 per cent of the project without finance.
“No PPA is attached to the Yarranlea Solar Farm project so we decided to go ahead with merchant to capture the NEM spot price,” he said.
“There are a number of technical challenges with the generator performance standards (GPS).
“In discussion with the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) and NSPs and supported by technical specialists, we secured the offer to connect from Ergon Energy and received approval from AEMO, under the National Electricity Rules, clause 5.3.4A for the proposed GPS for Yarranlea Solar Farm.
“We will continue to work with industrial specialists and consult with local council, electricity authority, regulator and local people to progress the project to the next stage to achieve the best outcome for the project and community.”
More than 200 jobs will be created during the construction phase of the plant which will have approximately 400,000 solar panels installed at the site. Risen Energy will provide their global EPC experience to support the Yarranlea Solar project and will supply the latest PV panel technology and integrated battery storage to allow it to supply power to the grid during periods of peak demand.
The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.
