Tuesday, July 30, 2013

AGL, First Solar to Develop Australia’s Largest Solar Project

AGL, First Solar to Develop Australia’s Largest Solar Project

AGL Energy Ltd., Australia’s largest developer of renewable energy projects, said it will go ahead with a A$450 million ($408 million) solar project in New South Wales state with First Solar Inc.
Bloomberg45 mins ago

AGL, First Solar to Develop Australia’s Largest Solar Project

AGL Energy Ltd. (AGK), Australia’s largest developer of renewable energy projects, said it will go ahead with a A$450 million ($408 million) solar project in New South Wales state with First Solar Inc. (FSLR)
AGL will build the 155-megawatt project at two sites in Broken Hill and Nyngan with A$166.7 million in federal and A$64.9 million in state funds, the Sydney-based company said today in a statement.
AGL is building the nation’s largest solar power development as Australia moves toward a goal of getting at least 20 percent of its power from renewable energy sources by the end of the decade. The Nyngan plant is also expected to be the largest in the southern hemisphere, AGL said.
Construction of the 102-megawatt Nyngan project in central New South Wales is scheduled to start in January, with completion expected by mid-2015, AGL said. The Broken Hill plant in the western part of the state is expected to start in July 2014 and be completed in about November 2015.
First Solar, the largest U.S. solar-panel manufacturer by shipments, will provide engineering and construction services for both plants, using its modules, according to the statement.
AGL, which won Australian government funds for the New South Wales solar project last year, has invested more than A$3 billion in renewable energy in the past seven years, making it the largest developer of projects in the country during that period, the company said earlier this month.
AGL earlier this month delayed a A$550 million wind farm in Australia because of uncertainty over government policy. AGL will defer hiring an engineering and construction contractor for the proposed Silverton wind farm in Australia’s New South Wales state and review its position in 2014, it said July 11.
To contact the reporter on this story: James Paton in Sydney at jpaton4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jason Rogers at jrogers73@bloomberg.net

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