Renewables developer Acen Australia said the scoping report for its proposed Cooma solar and battery project, that would comprise a 100 MW solar farm and an 80 MW battery with two to four hours storage capacity, has been lodged with the New South Wales (NSW) state government.
Acen said the scoping report for the Cooma solar and battery project has been submitted to the New South Wales (NSW) Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) for assessment.
The scoping report is the first phase of the planning approvals process for the Cooma project with the DHPI to assess it to prepare and issue its secretary’s environmental assessment requirements (SEARs) for the project. The SEARs will set out issues that must be addressed in the environmental impact statement (EIS) for the project.
Acen said it expect to submit the EIS to the department in early 2025, pending receipt of SEARS.
The solar and battery project is being developed on a site about seven kilometres (km) northeast of Cooma, approximately 110 km south of Canberra.
Acen said the project will involve the construction and operation of a solar farm comprising approximately 200,000 PV modules, a battery energy storage system, electrical infrastructure and supporting infrastructure. It is expected the facility will connect to the grid via an existing Transgrid 132 kV line just west of the project area.
It is anticipated construction will begin early 2027 with operations expected to commence by late 2028.
Acen said the Cooma Project, and in particular its storage component, will support the strengthening of energy security in NSW and throughout the National Electricity Market (NEM).
The company expects the solar plant will generate enough clean energy to power about 45,000 average Australian homes each year while the battery will enable energy to be stored and released during periods of increased demand.
“The project will assist the NEM to provide a reliable, secure electricity supply,” Acen said in the scoping report, adding that the facility will “reduce forecast electricity generation shortfalls, which are due to increased electricity demand and the retirement of coal-fired power in NSW.”
The company said the battery facility will “complement ongoing efforts by TransGrid to reduce transmission congestion and provide capacity for more renewable generation in southern NSW and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).”
Acen also noted that once operational, there will be space under and between the panels for sheep to graze, “continuing the region’s close agricultural connection with the land.”
The Cooma solar and battery project is the latest in a blooming portfolio of solar, wind, battery storage and pumped hydro projects being progressed by Acen in Australia.
The company said it has more than 1 GW capacity of large-scale renewable energy in construction, and more than 13 GW capacity in the development pipeline.
Included in its projects is the 720 MW New England Solar Farm being developed near Uralla in northern NSW. The 400 MW first stage of the facility went into operation in late 2023 with construction of the 320 MW second stage expected to commence later this year. Acen is also building two battery energy storage systems with a combined 200 MW / 400 MWh capacity alongside the New England solar farm.
Other projects in Acen’s Australian portfolio include the 400 MW Stubbo Solar Farm being constructed in NSW’s central west. It has also started construction of the 190 MW Axedale Solar Farm in Victoria and has teamed with the Yindibarndi Energy Corporation to develop a 3 GW solar and battery storage project in Western Australia.
Other projects in ACEN’s Australian development portfolio include the 600 MW Birriwa, the 320 MW Narragamba, and the 320 MW Deeargee solar farms, and the proposed 800 MW, 12-hour Phoenix pumped hydro project, all in NSW.
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