X-Elio plans Australian 720 MW/2.88 GWh solar-and-battery project

Spanish renewables developer X-Elio has submitted an application for a 720 MW solar farm with a 720 MW/2.88 GWh battery energy storage project to the Australian government, for approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

The North Burnett Renewable Energy Hub is planned on a 2,200-hectare cattle grazing property around 140 km southwest of Gladstone, in central Queensland.

X-Elio said, in its planning documents, that the proposed project’s location is “well-suited for renewable energy development” due to “ample solar resources, legacy and upgraded [electricity] connection [and] transmission infrastructure, and large areas of grazing land that could house solar PV.”

The North Burnett Renewable Energy Hub would include solar panels mounted on single-axis trackers, battery units, inverters, and other associated equipment and infrastructure, including transformers and an on-site electricity substation. The developer expects construction would take around three years.

X-Elio said the project could provide electricity generation and storage that will assist in the grid’s “transition to renewable energy sources as fossil fuel electricity generation is reduced.”

The North Burnett Renewable Energy Hub is part of X-Elio’s growing Australian portfolio, which also includes the 200 MW Blue Grass Solar Farm, near Chinchilla in Queensland’s Western Downs region, where the company is now planning to install a 148 MW battery energy storage system (BESS).

X-Elio, which is owned by Canadian investment giant Brookfield, has also started building its Forest Glen solar and storage project near Dubbo, in New South Wales, and has unveiled plans to build a 300 MW solar farm and BESS near Wagga Wagga.

The developer has also secured federal government approval to proceed with construction of the 350 MW Sixteen Mile Solar Farm and a co-located 120 MW/240 MWh battery in Queensland.

From pv magazine Australia.