The Project
Located approximately 12 kilometers east of Armidale in northern NSW, Olive Grove Solar Farm is a renewable energy project being developed by Infinergy Australia on behalf of Olive Grove Solar Farm Pty Ltd.
The project has been located on approximately 104 ha of previously cleared and highly modified farmland which is naturally screened by local topography and existing vegetation from most view points. The final location and scale of the project have been carefully designed in response to detailed site assessments in order to avoid or minimise potential environmental impacts.
Fully constructed, the solar farm would have a nameplate capacity of 29.9 megawatts (MW), producing enough energy to power the equivalent of approximately 15,500 average NSW households each year, while reducing annual greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 54,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), based on the current energy mix of the NSW electricity sector.
The Technology
The Proposal will generate electricity through the conversion of solar radiation to electricity using PV panels, laid out across the proposal site in rows, mounted on a single axis tracking system with piled supports. Other infrastructure on site would include electrical inverters, underground electrical cabling, internal access tracks, operational buildings, parking areas, security fencing and landscape screening.
Timeline
A planning application and accompanying assessments have been submitted to the Armidale Regional Council. If approved, it is estimated that the Proposal would take approximately 9 months to construct and would be operational for approximately 28 years. Following the operational period, all above ground infrastructure would be decommissioned from site which would take approximately 6 months. As such, planning consent for the Proposal is sought for 30 years.
Indicative time-frame for project phases
|
Phase |
Indicative Start |
Indicative Period |
|
Construction |
2023 / 2024 |
9 months |
|
Operation |
2024 / 2025 |
~28 years |
|
Decommissioning |
2053 / 2054 |
6 months |