Plans for a 280 megawatt (MW) solar farm, named the Cultana Solar Project, have been revealed as the first part of GFG Alliance’s US$1 billion, one‐gigawatt dispatchable renewable energy program in South Australia.
Currently, South Australia leads the nation in the uptake of wind energy and rooftop solar with renewable sources accounting for more than 40 per cent of the electricity generated in the state, and the Cultana Solar Project which is set to be located in South Australia’s Upper Spencer Gulf (approximately 300km north of Adelaide) shows there’s no stopping the state any time soon.
The Cultana Solar Project is expected to include 780,000 solar panels which are capable of generating 600-gigawatt hours (GWh) of energy generation per year, which is equivalent to powering 96,000 homes whilst offsetting 492,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.
Executive Chairman of GFG Alliance, Sanjeev Gupta said the company wants to develop and invest in new‐generation energy assets that will bring down Australia’s electricity prices to competitive levels again.
“This [project] signals the beginning of our journey with a number of stakeholders to not only transform GFG’s operations in Whyalla but also further enhance the appeal of this great city.”
Limited details are available on Gupta’s other projects in the Upper Spencer Gulf region, but he has said they include cogeneration at GFG’s Whyalla Primary Steel plant using waste gas, the world’s largest lithium‐ion battery, and pumped hydro projects at GFG’s Middleback Ranges mining operations, amongst other big plans.
Gupta said the 1100-hectare Cultana project, together with SIMEC ZEN’s second solar project nearby would see the project form one of Australia’s largest solar farms.
“All of these projects will not only improve reliability and greatly reduce the cost of electricity in our own operations, they will also provide competitive sources of power for other industrial and commercial users, while at the same time playing a key role in the market’s transition towards renewables,” he said.
“We have a strong conviction that traditional carbon‐intensive generation sources do not have a long‐term future as the predominant source of power in Australia and globally. We believe the world is undergoing a momentous transition to renewable power as the cost of renewables drops dramatically and quickly,” Gupta commented, but also acknowledged the critical role that coal and other traditional fossil-fuel-based power must play in this transition.
Whyalla Mayor Lyn Breuer said her local council was keen to partner with GFG Alliance in the rejuvenation of Whyalla over the coming decades, including leasing a portion of the land for the Cultana project.
“We’ve already seen Sanjeev invest tens of millions improving efficiencies and reducing input costs for his Whyalla operations, this now marks the beginning of his long‐term investment program,” Mayor Breuer said, “most importantly for Whyalla, this project signals to the nation that Whyalla is open for development, helping attract industries to our great city and further diversify and strengthen our economy.”
Development approval is expected towards the end of the year, following this, construction is forecast to commence in the first quarter of 2019. During construction 350 direct jobs will be created, then 10 ongoing operation and maintenance positions will become available after completion.