Neoen has completed a financial close on Western Downs Green Power Hub, a 460 MWp solar farm located near Chinchilla in South West Queensland. Entirely owned by Neoen, Western Downs will be the largest solar farm in Australia, delivering clean energy into Powerlink’s transmission network and bringing significant economic benefits to the region.
The financing of Western Downs was completed five months after Neoen secured a 352 MWp power purchase agreement with CleanCo Queensland, in one of Australia’s most substantial renewable contracts to date. The project will contribute over 30% of the energy required for CleanCo to meet its target of 1 GW of new renewable energy generation by 2025. CleanCo is focused on activities that contribute to achieving the sunshine state’s 50% renewable energy target by 2030 and create new investment and jobs in regional Queensland.
Total project costs will amount to approximately AUD600 million (US$423.57 million), with debt provided by a syndicate of seven lenders: Natixis, Société Générale, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, MUFG Bank, NORD/LB, HSBC, and Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
The investment is expected to create over 400 construction jobs in the local area and South West Queensland region. Sterling & Wilson were appointed as the project’s Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) contractor in May, design and engineering works began in June, and site mobilization is expected in the fourth quarter of 2020. Construction is expected to take over a year, with energy generation scheduled to commence in 2022. The solar farm will generate energy to power 235,000 Queensland homes, or enough to power every home on the Sunshine Coast.
