Power from Australia!
A cattle station in the Australian outback is ready to host the world’s largest solar farm. Sat halfway between Alice Springs and Darwin, the $20 billion project, “Sun Cable”, even reaches far enough to provide power for Singapore! [Featured Image: Zbynek Burival, Unsplash].
Electricity from the Newcastle Waters site will provide power to the Northern Territory’s grid. The cattle grid will boast a 10,000 sq km space, with a 10-gigawatt farm that is visible from space.
“Sun Cable” was granted major project status in July 2020. It has since garnered billion dollar investment from names such as Andrew Forrest and Mike Cannon-Brookes.
The project’s CEO, David Griffin, revealed that the project would use 12,000 hectares of land. Plus, construction should begin in 2023, with a view to finishing in 2026 and providing full power potential in 2027.
“It’s a bit of a balancing act too, because it’s far south enough to get away from the main patch affected by the wet season, so it’s a steady solar resource throughout the year.”
It is thought that with two cables leading there, “Sun Cable” can use solar power to provide about 20% of Singapore’s electricity requirements. Singapore could then begin to move away from its more expensive, less-environmentally-friendly gas power system.
Roll on 2027!