www.watoday.com.au
12 Apr 2012
WA's historic solar power farm will soon be glistening in the outback, with the first panel installed today. In what will be the largest solar power generator in the country, the farm will house 150,000 panels across 80 hectares, creating a remarkable sight and producing an environmental feat. The 10 MW Greenough River solar farm is being built 50 km south of Geraldton, with 100 construction jobs created.
It is expected to generate enough electricity for 3,000 average homes while displacing 20,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas each year-the equivalent of taking 4000 vehicles off the road. The state government has contributed $10 million to the joint venture between WA electricity generator Verve Energy and private companies FirstSolar and GE Energy Financial Services. Minister for Energy Peter Collier said the project would be a major source of renewable energy and a benchmark example of how solar power could be farmed and distributed to the wider community and industry.
"No other jurisdiction in Australia has done what we are doing here in the Mid West region of Western Australia", he said. "There is an appetite for solar power and an expectation that governments and electricity generators like Verve Energy will build solar farms and other renewable energy projects". Australian Solar Energy Society chief executive John Grimes said the farm was groundbreaking.
"[It's] a window into Australia's solar future", he said. "Big solar makes sense in the Mid West. The region's enormous appetite for energy is matched by some of the best sunshine in the world. "Solar increasingly makes economic sense in the Mid West, with a dramatic fall in the price of solar PV countering a significant rise in the cost of electricity". Mr Grimes said there was no reason why solar could not provide a significant amount of Austral's electricity needs by 2020, particularly with the introduction of the carbon tax from July 1 and the national 20% renewable energy target.
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