Tasmania

Tasmania’s largest hybrid solar proposal, the 288 MW Northern Midlands Solar Farm being developed by startup TasRex, was approved by the Northern Midlands Council on December 11. The agrivoltaic project, which will host a flock of sheep beneath its panels, is seeking to be operational by 2026, and includes a 346 MW / 691 MWh battery.

Australian hydrogen project developer Abel Energy has selected UK firm Johnson Matthey and US company SunGas Renewables in the design of its flagship green hydrogen and methanol project at Bell Bay in northern Tasmania.

Sun Cable, which plans to build a 20 GW solar farm in the Northern Territory and export solar-generated electricity to Singapore via a 4,300-kilometre high-voltage undersea cable system, has announced plans to manufacture the power cables itself at a “multi-billion facility” in Tasmania.

A 288 MW solar farm in Tasmania’s Northern Midlands region has been identified as the first of a series of large-scale renewable energy generation projects set to be developed by newly launched clean energy startup TasRex.

French renewable energy giant Neoen has been given the green light for another grid-scale battery in Australia with Tasmania’s Northern Midlands Council unanimously approving plans for a 280 MW/560 MWh battery energy storage system to be built in the island state’s mid-north.

The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) has proposed increasing price caps on the country’s main electricity market. This is meant to allow investors to respond to fill gaps created by ageing coal generation.

Data shows a sharp increase in the number of fires caused by the DC isolators that separate the grid from solar panels. ABC News gathered state-by-state data revealing a dramatic increase in fire incidents in the last 12 months. 

The initial capacity of the proposed Marinus Link transmission project, that would connect Tasmania and the Australian mainland via an undersea electricity interconnector, has been reduced by 50% as part of new funding arrangements announced by the federal and state governments.

Australian manufacturer Incat Tasmania is building the world’s largest all-electric ship at its yards in Hobart with the 130-metre-long vessel to be fitted with a 40 MWh battery energy storage system that will power a series of electric propulsion system and waterjets.

A permanent shift towards 100% renewable energy supply on Tasmania’s King Island is a step closer to realisation with the completion of a new 1.5 MW solar farm adding to the existing hybrid off-grid power system that services the island.