Danish renewables giant crowns royal visit with inauguration of Australian solar farm

Danish renewables outfit European Energy has officially launched its 108 megawatt Lancaster Solar Farm in Victoria, just a few weeks after the new large-scale PV project appeared on the market operator’s grid management system.

The 170,000-panel project is located around 9 km east of Kyabram in the central-northern Victoria and is contracted to supply renewable electricity to the Australian operations of global tech giant, Apple, under a long-term power purchase agreement, struck last year.

The project launch, which coincided with the visit to Australia by the King and Queen of Denmark, was also attended by local stakeholders and members of the Yorta Yorta community, the First Nations Traditional Custodians of the land.

“The Lancaster Solar Farm adds further scale to European Energy’s activities in Australia and reflects the company’s strategy of expanding its renewable energy portfolio in markets with strong demand for clean electricity,” said Knud Erik Andersen, the company’s CEO.

“Australia is developing quickly as a renewable energy market, and European Energy continues to build a project pipeline supported by long-term power purchase agreements and partnerships with corporate offtakers.”

European Energy currently has a development pipeline of roughly 10 gigawatts (GW) of solar, onshore wind and battery storage projects in Australia. The offtake deal with Apple is one of a number that the company has struck with global tech giants for its solar projects in Australia.

Amazon, for instance, has off-take deals for European Energy’s Mokoan, Winton North and Bullyard solar projects in Victoria and Queensland, while Google and Air Trunk have signed up for its Mulwala solar project in New South Wales.

The 46 meagwatt (MW) Mokoan solar farm is already operating, and is the first project that won an underwriting agreement under the federal government’s Capacity Investment Scheme to reach full production.

European Energy is also developing the massive 1.1 GW Upper Calliope solar project in Queensland, which is underpinned by a contract with Rio Tinto to help power its smelters and refineries in Gladstone, where the mining company plans to close down the coal generator in 2029.

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