Two more solar farms approved for Queensland’s north

Another two utility-scale solar farms with a combined total of 141MW have been approved for development in north Queensland, as the Sunshine State starts to live up to its massive PV potential.

Leading global developer Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV) said on Monday it had received approval to deliver the two projects located in Clare and Tieri in the state’s north.

FRV, which was behind the ground-breaking Moree and Royalla solar farms in New South Wales, and is currently developing the 125MW Clare Solar Farm in northern Queensland, said the new projects would boost the company’s existing 281MW portfolio of projects approved in the state, but not yet under construction, by more than 50 per cent.

The 45MW Clare II Solar Farm – which will be located adjacent to its original namesake – was approved by the Burdekin Shire Council in June, while the 96MW Tieri Solar Farm received approval from the Central Highlands Regional Council in late May.

In the same region in Queensland, FRV also has approval to construct the 125MW Lilyvale Solar Farm, construction of which is expected to start in the third quarter of 2017.

“These recent planning approvals build on FRV’s track record of successfully working with local communities to achieve positive regulatory endorsement for its utility-scale solar projects,” Managing Director of FRV Australia, Cameron Garnsworthy, said.

Other developers have also set their sights on Queensland, with ESCO Pacific claiming to have received approval for 470MW of solar farms in the state, on top of its 148MW Ross River Solar Farm, which is being built on a former mango farm near Townsville.

According to RE data, there are now 17 solar farms under construction in Queensland, and at least another 34 known projects in the pipeline.