The federal government has approved Lightsource bp‘s Goulburn River Solar Farm, a 450MW renewable energy project integrated with a BESS facility to enhance grid stability.
Related article: Goulburn River Solar Farm granted planning approval
Situated near Merriwa in the Upper Hunter region, 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.
Goulburn River Solar Farm includes the construction of 1 million solar panels, a battery storage system and local road upgrades.
Construction on the associated road upgrades is set to begin towards the end of 2024, and the project will provide up to 350 full-time equivalent construction roles throughout the two-year construction process.
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The project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 733,000 tonnes per annum, the equivalent of taking 220,000 cars off the road for a year.
