Elecnor announces debt for Australian solar project

Spain's Elecnor is extending its development activity in Australia through the construction of a 25 MW solar photovoltaic plant in Barcaldine in the state of Queensland. The total outlay will be AUD 69 million (around €47.3 million at the prevailing exchange rate).

The project is debt financed by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), an Australian government-owned financial institution with offices in Sydney and Brisbane and specialising in the financing of projects related to renewables and energy efficiency. It is also receiving funding support from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) under its Regional Renewable Energy Programme. ARENA's objectives are to improve the competitiveness of renewable energy technologies and to increase the supply of renewable energy in Australia. 

The Barcaldine solar PV plant will be built on a 90 hectare site. Its 79,000 photovoltaic panels will generate an estimated annual output of 56,000 MWh, sufficient to satisfy the consumption requirements of 5,300 households. 

This project is in addition to the one that Elecnor has been carrying out as an EPC company in another Australian state (New South Wales) for Moree Solar Farm Pty Ltd, which is part of Fotowatio Renewables Venture (FRV). It is a EUR 95 million plant with a nameplate capacity of 70 MW. 

In another renewables field, namely wind energy, Elecnor recently secured administrative authorisation to develop a 210 MW wind farm in the state of Victoria through its subsidiary Enerfin.

Since first embarking in the sector a decade ago, Elecnor has installed around 500 MW in solar photovoltaic facilities, ground-based and also roof-top.

Elecnor operates in Australia through a Melbourne-headquartered subsidiary established in 2014, which focuses on the development of business infrastructure and renewable energies in this and other countries in Oceania.