Australia’s AGL Energy Ltd. said construction of two utility-scale solar photovoltaic power plants, in Nyngan and Broken Hill in western New South Wales, are progressing on schedule.
The 102-megawatt Nyngan project will start initial operations in April.
“First generation will come from 25 percent of the 1.35 million modules currently installed,” said Anthony Fowler, Group General for Manager Merchant Energy. We expect first generation to take place in the next month or two and all going well, the Nyngan Solar Plant will be fully operational by July 2015.”
The Nyngan Solar Plant site covers approximately 250 hectares and 40% of the solar PV modules have been installed so far. The project’s main transformer, which increases the voltage from 33kV to 132kV for transmission into the national energy grid, has also been energised in preparation for electricity generation, the company said.
At the 140 hectare site of the 53-MW Broken Hill plant, 25% of the posts and 15% of the tilts which will hold the 650,000 solar PV modules have been installed. The project is expected to eb completed by the end of 2015.
Total capital expenditure for the two projects is approximately A$440 million (US$347 million), with A$231.6 million coming from federal and state government grants. First Solar is constructing the plants.