Another solar and battery project approved in Victoria

British solar and storage developer Elgin Energy says it has secured development approval for another solar and battery project in Australia, this time in Victoria.

It announced on its LinkedIn profile that it had secured development approval from the Victorian government for its proposed Shady Creek Solar Farm, which will be sized at 60MW with a 60 MW, two hour (120 MWh) battery.

The solar and battery project will be built on a 107 hectare site near Yarragon, in the West Gippsland region of Victoria. The site has been chosen due to its proximity to a high-voltage transmission line which runs adjacent to the site.

Development approval for the Shady Creek Solar Farm comes only a fortnight after Elgin Energy secured development approval for a similar sized solar and battery storage project in New South Wales.

The Glanmire Solar Farm, to be located 7 kilometres east of Bathurst, secured approval from the NSW Independent Planning Commission (IPC) despite being the subject of 131 letters of objection from across the region, and only six letters of support.

Despite the number of objections – which included concerns about potential “heat islands”, stress, noise, the impact on tourists because it would be “visually unpleasant”, and the impact on the view from the Mt Panorama race track 10kms away, and the threat of “glare” on the local airfield – a three-member IPC panel approved the project.

They said the site is “suitable for renewable energy development, given its topography, solar resources, avoidance of major environmental constraints, access to the regional road network, and its proximity to existing and planned electricity transmission networks.”

Elgin Energy says it currently boasts a pipeline of 4GW of renewable energy projects across New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland.