Off-grid power specialist Pacific Energy said it has signed an agreement with miner Iluka Resources to design and construct a 30 MW hybrid power generation facility for its new Balranald mineral sands development in southwest New South Wales (NSW).
The hybrid power system, to be designed and manufactured in-house by Pacific and delivered under a 12-year build-own-operate agreement, will comprise a 10.6 MW solar farm and a 5.4 MW / 3.2MWh grid-forming battery energy storage system backed by 14.4 MW of diesel-fuelled generation. The project will also include a 2km overhead powerline connecting the solar farm to the power station.
Pacific said the power system will be capable of “hydrocarbons-off functionality,” enabling the site to operate on 100% renewable energy when solar power production outweighs mine site load.
The Perth-based company expects site works for the hybrid power system to commence next month, subject to approvals, with the solar farm due for completion in March 2026. The company will also be installing a temporary power station at the Balranald site later this month to deliver power while the permanent power station is under construction.
Pacific Chief Executive Jamie Cullen said the project builds on the company’s long-standing relationship with Iluka that dates back to 2009, when it established the Jacinth-Ambrosia power station in South Australia.
Cullen also noted that the agreement with Iluka marks another important step in delivering on the company’s east coast growth strategy.
Pacific is also delivering a hybrid system, including 11 MW of solar generation and a 3 MW / 6 MWh battery, to help power Tronox’s Atlas-Campaspe mining operation located about one hour north of the Balranald site.
“Our Balranald system will be the second off-grid hybrid power system we’ll be delivering to a miner in NSW, marking another important milestone in Pacific Energy’s operational expansion and national growth strategy,” Cullen said.
Pacific, owned by investment manager QIC, owns and operates assets at 46 sites nationally and has 923 MW of contracted capacity under management.
Iluka’s Balranald development has been rated one of the world’s highest grade critical minerals deposits, containing significant quantities of rutile and zircon, as well as smaller but material quantities of rare earths.
The $480 million (USD 311.2 million) project has attracted global attention as a Western world source of heavy and light rare earths used in a range of sustainable development and renewable energy applications, including solar panels and wind turbines.
Perth-based Iluka commenced early works on site in early 2023 and remains on track for commissioning later this year.
The project has an average annual production target of 60,000 tonnes a year of rutile, 50,000 tonnes a year of zircon, 50,000-70,000 tonnes of synthetic rutile, 4,000 tonnes a year of a rare earth concentrate, and 150,000 tonnes a year of sulphate ilmenite.
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