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The project was given the green light subject to conditions. Image: Middlebrook Solar Farm.
The New South Wales Independent Planning Commission (IPC) in Australia yesterday (11 November) granted approval for the 320MW Middlebrook solar-plus-storage project in Tamworth.
The state-significant development, located in the northeast of New South Wales and 22km south of the city of Tamworth, will feature a 320MW/780MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) co-located on the project’s site.
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Planning documents for the project indicated that the project represents an investment of around AU$856 million (US$562 million) and will generate up to 400 construction jobs and 15 operational jobs.
It is also worth noting that the site location is around 27km west of the New England Renewable Energy Zone (REZ). This REZ aims to deliver 8GW of additional network capacity, supporting renewable energy generation technologies such as solar and energy storage. A scoping report was lodged in July and it is expected to attract over AU$24 billion in private investment by 2034.
The solar PV element of the project will include 750,000 solar PV modules and will generate green electricity that will connect to the National Electricity Market (NEM) via an on-site substation and an existing 330kV transmission line owned by Transgrid.
In its Statement of Reasons for Decision, the Commission panel found that the Middlebrook project is “suitable for renewable energy development given its location close to existing electricity transmission networks, topography, solar resources, avoidance of major environmental constraints, access to the state and regional road network and potential for continued use of the land for grazing”.
Despite this, the project received more than 50 public objections. To satisfy some of these, the IPC has implemented conditions the owner, TotalEnergies, will have to adhere to.
Most of these conditions are visual cues, such as ensuring vegetation screening of the BESS and substation is in place and that landowners can request vegetation screening on properties within 3km of the project.
TotalEnergies must also ensure there is a suitable decommission and rehabilitation plan in place for the project.
Elsewhere in New South Wales, module manufacturing giant Canadian Solar yesterday (11 November) received state government approval for a 250MW solar-plus-storage project it is developing near Gunning.
The AU$651 million utility-scale solar PV power plant will include a 150MW/600MWh 4-hour duration BESS with Canadian Solar to utilise its Bifacial 690W+ modules for the project.
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