Massive solar and four-hour big battery project joins queue for federal green tick

A 720MW solar farm and four-hour/2,880MWh battery project being proposed for the North Burnett Region near Gladstone in Queensland has been referred for assessment under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.

According to details published Tuesday on the EPBC public database, the proposed North Burnett Renewable Energy Hub is being developed by the local subsidiary of Spanish renewable energy project company X-Elio.

The solar project would measure 720MWp while a companion 720 MW battery energy storage system would provide four hours of storage, or 2,880MWh.

Located approximately 140 kilometres south-west of Gladstone, in the northern catchment area of the Burnett River, the proposed project has already submitted the necessary ecological assessment report, which was completed by local environmental consultants NGH.

While several species including koala and the greater glider were recognised as likely to be impacted by the development, the project has been specifically designed to avoid impacts through a range of different measures, including fencing friendly to local species.

The report determines the proposed project will have a “significant residual impact” on the local koala population and an “unlikely” impact on the greater glider population, though an offset area will be built to compensate for the loss of habitat for the two species.

Public engagement and consultation with Indigenous stakeholders is expected to get underway in the early part of 2025, and application for necessary approvals is ongoing.

X-Elio Australia is currently in various stages of development of six renewable energy projects totalling nearly 1,500MW, and operates the 200MW Blue Grass Solar near Chinchilla, Queensland.

Among projects under development is a 148MW two-hour/296MWh being built alongside the Blue Grass Solar farm, which the company announced late last year. The project will be built in two stages, starting with a 60MW battery to be completed by the third quarter of 2025, and another 88MW battery to be completed by the third quarter of 2026.

The final design of another project, the Sixteen Mile solar farm in Queensland’s Western Downs region, was also confirmed in October, which will consist of a 350MW solar farm and a companion 120MW 2-hour/240MWh battery system.