On 25 October, 2006, Australian company Solar Systems announced an ambitious solar energy project that will add significant benefits for both Victorian residents directly and the global environment as a result.  

A 154 MW photovoltaic solar energy power plant will be built in north west Victoria in Australia. The solar power plant has been designed and built by Solar Systems and will be the biggest and most efficient photovoltaic power plant in the world.

The solar power plant will generate enough electricity to power 45,000 homes per year with zero greenhouse gas emissions. It will make a big contribution to reducing carbon emissions with estimations putting the actual reduction at approximately 400,000 tonnes per year.

The cost of the new solar power plant was originally estimated to run to $420 million. The Australian Federal Government chipped in a $75 million grant under the Federal Government’s Low Emissions Technology Demonstration Fund (LETDF). The Victorian State Government also supported the project by providing a grant of a further $50 million.

The solar power plant will use technology known as ‘Heliostat Concentrator Photovoltaic’ (HCPV). It will consist of fields of sun tracking mirrors focusing sunlight on the receivers. The receivers house photovoltaic (PV) modules, which consist of arrays of ultra high-efficiency solar cells that convert sunlight directly into electricity.

Most of this system is built out of ordinary materials like glass, steel and concrete. This means the unique combination of high technology and common materials enables a high performance solar power station to be built at a relatively low cost.

The PV modules in the HCPV system run at 500 times sunlight concentration. They are also three times more efficient than standard solar panels. This means their output is 1500 times greater than the same area of standard flat plate PV modules.

Full commissioning of the project is expected in 2013 with the first stage to be complete in 2010. The 154 MW capacity means that the large scale solar power plant generation capability will be 270,000 MWh per annum

The original media release can be viewed at the Solar Systems Pty Ltd website.

You can read about other solar energy developments in construction by visitng the solar energy page.