Iberdrola Australia, a sub-division of utility giant Iberdrola, has secured power purchase agreements (PPAs) with 13 regional councils in New South Wales that will see part of the energy sourced from a large-scale solar PV power plant.
Under the terms of the PPA, Iberdrola Australia will supply the 13 councils with over 390GWh of renewable energy sourced from the 245MW Avonlie solar PV project and Iberdrola’s Capital and Bodangora wind farms.
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The ‘Powering Tomorrow: Regional Councils NSW PPA’ initiative was coordinated by the Hunter Joint Organisation and Mid North Coast Joint Organisation, along with advisors Sourced Energy, Regional Procurement, Procure Group, and Baker Mackenzie. The New South Wales government provided financial support.
A statement released yesterday (12 November) signalled that the energy sourced from the PPA would be supplied to 163 large council sites and street lighting.
Several councils, including Maitland, MidCoast, Meswellbrook, and Bellingen, opted to source 100% renewable energy through the PPA agreement.
Other councils to have inked a PPA with Iberdrola include Upper Hunter, Singleton, Port Stephens, Leeton, Edward River and Murray River.
The PPAs with each respective council will last six years and terminate in 2030.
For Mark Griffin, general manager of Bellingen Shire Council, the PPA agreement will help the council meet its 2030 emission reduction target five years ahead of schedule.
“By securing 100% renewable electricity, we are not only achieving environmental goals but also ensuring budget stability through to 2030,” Griffin added.
Iberdrola Australia acquired the 245MW Avonlie solar PV project from developer RES in 2021, and construction started in the same year. The project came online in 2022, and it generates around 500GWh of renewable energy per year.
In recent months, Iberdrola Australia commenced construction on a 376MW solar-plus-storage project in Queensland, including plans for a 180MW/260MWh co-located battery energy storage system (BESS).
Broadsound is located at Clarke Creek, around 860km northwest of Brisbane, and construction of the project is anticipated to begin in mid-2026. Iberdrola Australia works closely with the Barada Kabalbara Yetimarala (BKY) People on the site’s construction.
