Bundaberg council considers 100MW solar farm proposed for Isis River

A 100MW solar farm, with the potential for added battery storage, has been proposed for development in the Bundaberg region in Queensland, promising to create 250 construction jobs and power around 24,000 homes.

The project is proposed for private land in Isis River, around 50km from Bundaberg, according to an application submitted to the Bundaberg Regional Council.

The applicant for the project is listed as Venn Artibir Group, a company registered in Melbourne in March of last year.

The application notes the project would be developed next to an existing Ergon Energy substation, maximising the project’s ability to connect to the grid and minimising transmission losses.

A new on-site substation would also be built, as well as a roughly 800m overhead 132kV transmission line to connect the new substation to the existing facility.

Bundaberg Regional Council Development Group Manager, Michael Ellery, said the application would be assessed against Council’s Planning Scheme for compliance.

“This is one of the bigger solar farms that has come to Council for approval in the region, and it will easily service over 20,000 households,” he said.

“The proponent has advised that the development will be constructed over a 12-month period, including three months for testing purposes.

“There is expected to be a maximum workforce of 250 required on-site for the construction phase and typically not more than 10 staff during the operational phase.”

The coastal town of Bundaberg has a strong connection to solar, already, in 2019 topping the list of Australian postcodes with the most rooftop PV installed, at 12,620 systems, amounting to 47,510kW of combined capacity.

In the large-scale department, the nearby 75MW Childers Solar Farm was recently completed by ESCO Pacific and Elliot Green Power.