The Burdekin Shire Council has approved the construction of a planned gigawatt-scale multi-phase solar photovoltaic (PV) project in Queensland, Australia.

The Cambridge Solar Farm, a project led by Cambridge JMD Australia, a local subsidiary of investment manager Cambridge RE Partners, is being planned around 80km south of Townsville and will link up with the current transmission infrastructure.

Planned to be executed in multiple stages, the municipal council convened last week (8th October) to determine whether to authorize the project to advance to the construction stage. This decision followed the federal government’s approval of the project’s environmental compliance last month.

The council members convened and approved the multi-phase development of the project, comprising a 300MW initial stage, a 205MW second stage, and a final 560MW third stage. The first phase is projected to span 24 months, the second phase 18 months, and the third phase up to 24 months.

As highlighted in earlier coverage by PV Tech, the solar photovoltaic power plant will be located close to a planned Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) identified by the Queensland government. Three potential REZs, known as Far North Queensland, Collinsville, and Flinders, are under consideration for development in the northern and far northern areas of Queensland. Collectively, these zones are projected to produce up to 5GW of renewable energy upon full completion.

For the Cambridge Solar Farm, proximity to the REZs could prove advantageous for the project, enabling it to utilize modernized and enhanced transmission and infrastructure for connection to the National Electricity Market (NEM).

The proposed plans for the Cambridge Solar Farm also indicate the potential development of an on-site battery energy storage system (BESS). However, specific details regarding the capacity and duration of the BESS have not been disclosed at this time.