Financial close has been achieved on the first 400-MW phase of the 720-MW New England Solar Farm in New South Wales, Australia, developer UPC/AC Australia said today.
The hybrid project, featuring an up to 400-MWh battery storage system, is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2023. Debt financing for its initial stage was obtained on a merchant basis from Bank of China, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac.
Early works on the project, including substation and road design, were initiated at the site in Uralla late last year, a few months after Green Light Contractors, a unit of Spanish group Elecnor SA, was appointed as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the first phase.
The solar park is planned to be grid-connected and start generating electricity by July 2022. Once fully completed in 2023, it will be capable of supplying around 250,000 local homes a year. The first 50-MWh lot of the integrated battery storage capacity will be brought online in the middle of 2022.
The project proponent is a joint venture (JV) between Hong Kong-based UPC Renewables and AC Energy, a subsidiary of Philippine conglomerate Ayala Corporation.
Source: renewablesnow
