The Australian Government has today written to SolarReserve Australia Pty Ltd about its proposal to construct a 150MW concentrated solar thermal power plant at Port Augusta, South Australia.
In the 2017/18 Budget the Turnbull Government committed to invest up to $110 million to secure the delivery of a solar thermal plant at Port Augusta.
SolarReserve was recently awarded a power supply contract by the South Australian Government, which includes the construction of the new power plant. The announcement was welcomed by the Federal Government.
Solar thermal plants operate in a similar way to traditional fossil fuel power plants with steam spinning a conventional turbine, which means they can contribute to network stability and reliability when coupled with built-in storage.
The Federal Government has asked SolarReserve to provide all the project details. The Government will ask the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) to work with the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), in consultation with the Infrastructure and Project Financing Agency (IPFA), to provide the Government with advice on the project.
ARENA and the CEFC have a strong track record in supporting the commercialisation of emerging technologies and will use that expertise to take solar thermal to the next level in Australia.
The IPFA advises the Federal Government on funding and financing solutions for nationally significant infrastructure across all sectors, including energy.
The Turnbull Government’s investment in low emission technologies will help to deliver reliable and affordable energy as we move to a lower emissions future.