One of Australia’s biggest wind projects seeks green light to add solar and battery

The developer behind a mammoth proposed 1.4 gigawatt (GW) wind project in Queensland is now seeking federal environmental approval to add a large solar farm and a battery project alongside it.

The Bungaban joint venture was initially developed by Windlab but is now jointly owned by Andrew Forrest’s Squadron Energy and Federation Asset Management, which now owns all of Windlab.

They have already agreed on the plan to built the 1.4 GW Bungaban wind farm, but are now seeking permission to add a 500 megawatt (MW) solar farm and a 500 MW battery energy storage system (BESS), with official documentation now filed with the government’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EBPC) Act.

While the size of the battery storage capacity is not specified, it is likely to be around four hours, given the technology and market evolutions. The developers have also expressed a preference for the solar project to be “co-located” with livestock.

The decision to develop the solar and battery project followed engagement with the local community and stakeholders during the development of the wind project, which is in the final stages of its own progress through the EPBC queue, after entering the environmental assessment program in March.

The wind project, set to consist of up to 204 wind turbines, has already secured at least one power purchase agreement (PPA), signed in early 2024 with global mining giant Rio Tinto for 80 per cent of the wind farm’s output.

It is one of a number of projects contracted to help Rio Tinto’s Boyne Island smelter transition from coal fired generation – after the closure of the Gladstone coal generator in 2029 – to renewables and storage.

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