More Large-Scale Solar And Energy Storage Progress In Victoria

Gannawarra Solar Farm is operating at full capacity, construction of its colocated battery system has been completed and Wemen Solar Farm is connected to the grid says developer Wirsol.

Gannawarra Solar Farm/Energy Storage System

Wirsol announced yesterday the 60MW Gannawarra Solar Farm 13 kilometres west of Kerang in north-west Victoria has successfully passed all commissioning tests. Now operating at full capacity, the project is considered completed. The facility is expected to generate 123 gigawatt-hours of clean electricity per annum.

Gannawarra Solar Farm is 94.9% owned by Wirsol and 5.1% by Edify Energy.

Wirsol states construction of a 25MW/50MWh Tesla Powerpack based battery system co-located at the site has been finalised, meaning the Gannawarra Energy Storage System (GESS) is ahead of schedule. GESS is jointly owned by Wirsol and Edify and was supported with funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and Victoria’s Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP).

” The overall project and how it has evolved is unique to the industry which in turn sets a benchmark for future projects, which enables the ability to optimise the delivery of energy at peak times supporting demand throughout the daily cycle,” said Mark Hogan, Managing Director of Wirsol.

The project is the first combined solar power and storage facility in Victoria and the second “big battery” for the state. Last month, a 30MW/30MWh energy storage system was officially unveiled at the Ballarat Terminal Station. Delivered by Edify Energy, the battery storage units for that project were supplied by Fluence.

Wemen Solar Farm

The 110MW Wemen Solar Farm has been connected to the grid and generating power during commissioning says Wirsol. Approximately 319,000 solar panels are installed across an area of close to 700 acres at a site outside Wemen, Victoria; approximately 110 kilometres from Mildura.

Wemen Solar Farm, which is expected to generate 227 gigawatt-hours of electricity a year, will be Wirsol’s largest completed solar power project to date and has achieved first electricity generation just 11 months after construction commenced. The project is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

Wemen Solar Farm is owned by Wircon GmbH, parent company of Wirsol.

Combined, the Gannawarra and Wemen projects will generate enough electricity annually to provide for the requirements of the equivalent of approximately 52,100 Victorian households. The EPC contractor for both solar projects is RCR Tomlinson.

As well as Australia and Germany, Wirsol has energy projects in the UK, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland and Turkey. In Australia, Wirsol’s other solar energy projects include Clermont Solar Farm (QLD – 89MW), Whitsunday (QLD – 69MW), Hamilton (QLD – 69MW) and Rodds Bay (QLD – 300MW).