State-owned solar farm to power more than 50,000 homes

A new $370 million state-owned solar farm and battery in regional Victoria is expected to power more than 50,000 homes. The renewable energy park at Horsham, the second project awarded financial support by the State Energy Commission, will be 100 per cent government-owned, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan announced on Wednesday. The site will feature a 119-megawatt solar farm and 100MW two-hour battery, generating enough power to the grid to run 51,000 homes a year.

Ms Allan said it would be big enough to power the Victorian regional city of Bendigo. "This is a big moment ..



. for the generation of renewable energy in our state," she told reporters in Horsham. The project by Swedish-based developer OX2 was originally envisioned as a solar farm but has been expanded to include the big battery following the commission's cash injection.

Energy and Climate Action Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said the asset had an expected life span of 30 years and would help push down power bills. The commission's chief executive Chris Miller said work on the solar farm would begin before the end of 2024, with the battery build expected to start in 2025. "It's gone through the full planning process," he said.

"It's received planning permits ...

there were no objections or issues raised by community members." The Horsham community benefits fund will be paid $42,000 a year during construction, with the figure rising to $70,000 a year once the project is commercially operational in 2027. The Allan government expects some 246 jobs to be created during construction.

All profits will be reinvested in more renewable energy projects. Deputy Victorian Liberal leader David Southwick said the government had no plan to boost the supply of gas and "no idea" how the project would turn a profit or bring down energy prices. "We're in a cost-of-living crisis," he said.

"The government won't bring down power prices when they're delivering projects in 2027 and beyond." State-owned electricity assets in Victoria were privatised in the 1990s. Former premier Daniel Andrews vowed to bring back the government-owned renewable energy company if his party won a third term in 2022.

Legislation to enshrine the commission in the Victorian constitution passed parliament in October. In November 2023, the re-established body committed $245 million from its initial $1 billion kitty to build a battery farm near Melton. It will become one of the world's largest batteries once complete in 2025 and is 38.

5 per cent government-owned, contradicting an earlier edict that all commission-backed projects would be majority owned by the state..