Renewable power group Potentia Energy, formerly known as Enel Green Power, has announced that the 93 MW Girgarre Solar Farm project in central Victoria has reached full operational capacity and is now feeding clean power into the national electricity grid.
The $140 million (USD 90.9 million) project, located about 50 kilometres west of Shepparton, features more than 169,000 bifacial solar modules set on 250 hectares. The power plant has an annual electricity production capacity of 200 GWh, equivalent to the power needs of about 43,000 homes.
Electricity generated by the Girgarre Solar Farm has already been secured through a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with Japanese-owned electricity retailer SmartestEnergy.
Potentia Energy Chief Executive Officer Werther Esposito said the project had been many years in the making but renewable energy generated by the facility is now “powering businesses and homes across Victoria, supporting Australia’s transition to a sustainable energy future.”
Commissioning of the project began in May 2024 while constructed commenced in September 2023 with the turning of the “first sod”. The solar farm was constructed by Victoria-based EPC contractor Beon with the company saying close to 50% of the labour workforce was sourced from the local area.
The Girgarre Solar Farm is Potentia’s fourth completed solar project in Australia, following the Bungala One and Two solar projects in South Australia, which together have a capacity of 220 MW, and the 27 MW Cohuna Solar Farm in Victoria.
It is also building the Quorn Park hybrid project, that will combine a 96 MW solar farm and 20 MW / 40 MWh battery energy storage system, in the central west of New South Wales (NSW) and has a 75 MW wind farm in Western Australia (WA).
This is in addition to the almost 1.2 GW of renewable energy projects the company recently acquired from European investment giant CVC Capital Partners and Cbus, one of Australia’s largest industry superannuation funds.
That portfolio included more than 700 MW of operating solar and wind assets, including the 40 MW Greenough River Solar Farm in WA, the 125 MWp Clare Solar Farm in Queensland, and the 24 MW Royalla Solar Farm in the Australian Capital Territory.
Potentia has also announced proposals for a 300 MW / 1,200 MWh battery energy storage project at Bouldercombe in Queensland and has plans to develop 225 MW / 900 MWh and 125 MW / 500 MWh battery projects in South Australia.
The company, a 50-50 joint venture between Italian utilities major Enel Green Power and Japanese oil and gas giant Inpex, said it has rights secured for a development pipeline of more than 7 GW of renewable energy across Australia.
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