Octopus Investments and Edify Energy are very pleased to announce that Darlington Point Solar Farm has now completed the generator registration process. Darlington Point Solar Farm is a 275MWac, 333MWdc solar photovoltaic (PV) farm, located in South-West New South Wales and is currently the largest solar farm connected to the National Electricity Market. With two synchronous condensers as part of the project, Darlington Point Solar Farm adds further system strength to the power grid in a critical area, helping AEMO and TransGrid manage the ongoing integration of renewable energy generation.
AEMO’s Chief System Design & Engineering Officer, Alex Wonhas, said that the Darlington Point Solar Farm’s registration is another important milestone towards unlocking new generation in the West Murray Zone.
“AEMO congratulates Edify Energy and Octopus Investments in achieving registration for the Darlington Point Solar Farm. The issues identified in the West Murray Zone have made it more challenging to meet the connection requirements for new projects, so we especially appreciated the collaborative and responsive approach adopted to solve the technical challenges that arose.” he said.
Octopus Investments Australia Managing Director, Sam Reynolds, said: “This is a significant milestone for the Australian electricity market. Solar farms of this scale will be essential to filling the gap in power generation that will soon emerge as more of Australia’s ageing coal fleet retires, especially in New South Wales. AEMO’s latest Integrated System Plan aligns with our ambitions – to finance the urgently needed expansion of renewable energy in Australia. This comes with the challenge of ensuring the new generation can operate reliably on the power grid and maintain system strength. With two synchronous condensers we’re confident this project can be seen as a trailblazing template for the future of renewables in Australia and beyond.”
Edify Energy’s Chief Executive, John Cole, said: “Achieving registration of the Darlington Point Solar Farm and seeing it export energy to power NSW homes and businesses is very pleasing. This follows many years of hard work by the Edify team developing, financing, overseeing construction of, and now asset managing the largest operating solar farm in the country”.
We would like to acknowledge the AEMO and TransGrid teams who worked tirelessly in a very challenging environment with the project team. The power system is yet to reach peak complexity. We are here to navigate those complexities and develop and deliver new clean energy power stations that are attractive to investors and provide affordable, reliable and sustainable electricity for Australians.
The Darlington Point Solar Farm contains nearly 1 million solar panels spread over 1,000Ha and will provide cheap, clean green energy to over 110,000 homes. At its peak the project provided more than 700 construction jobs including many local to the area. Octopus and Edify would like to thank the community for their ongoing support of this project and hope it can be a source of pride and further economic benefit for those living locally.
